Never The Same Again
by Black Dragon Queen
Summary: SLASH! A rewrite of the episode "Same as it Never Was"! What if everyone in the future realized that Don was still only sixteen years old? Better question, what would happen if he was stuck there for over a year? WILL HAVE T-CEST!
1. Perfectly Tarnished: Arriving to Anarchy

Never The Same Again Part One: Perfectly Tarnished

_By Black Dragon Queen_

Disclaimer:All Teenage Mutant Ninja characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The plot, however is mine. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Rating/Warning:Mature Audiences ONLY! This will eventually be slash, meaning they're gay as well as deal with Incest (kind of, they're mutant turtles). Also a warning this is un-edited and I CAN'T SPELL TO SAVE MY LIFE! You have been warned.

Authors Ramblings:Well here it is! My foray into the world of the 2003 series of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! After seeing the new CGI DVD and hearing they're making yet a forth live action movie, I started recently poking my nose through the different stories scattered around. However, I kept coming across the same acronym in many summaries reading "SAINW". Completely BAFFLED by this strange string of letters, I finally looked it up and learned of the epic episode known as "Same As It Never Was". If you have not seen this episode WATCH IT FOR IT IS FABULOUS, however it is not a requirement for this story as I basically go over everything anyway. Please check my Profile for any and all updates as to what is going on with my stories and when they will be updated!

**NOTICE: **This story is unfortunately on hold until my Transformers story _**Cover Me**_ is complete. I know, I'm so bad for giving you a taste and then ripping it all away! Please read anyway!

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**Chapter One: Arriving To Anarchy**

Donatello's eyes snapped open as every nerve in his body screamed at him to move. He was on his feet and searching for an enemy before he even realized what it was he was doing. Every single one of his honed ninja instincts that Splinter had drilled into him rang loudly in warning; that something was wrong and he had to act fast. Spinning his Bo automatically to deflect any projectiles that could possibly be hurling at him at that very moment as his eyes darted about the room, taking it all in with one sweeping gaze as he looked for the enemy.

Nothing moved. Silence was the only thing to greet him. Blinking in surprise, Donatello lowered his staff as he took in the sight before him. There were no enemies that needed to be taken out, no arch villains there to gloat over him as they tried to destroy him and his family once again. In fact… there was no one there at all.

The truth was, it looked as if there hadn't been anyone there for a long, long time; which was odd considering that he was standing dead center of the main room of the lair. Don blinked his eyes rapidly and shook his head as he tried to figure out if this was real or if this was all just some bizarre optical illusion that some bad guy had managed to create in order to try and trick him. However every time he opened his eyes back up, the image before him always remained the same.

"What?" Don mumbled, as he looked around the room in complete morbid awe, just staring at all the destruction. Everything was completely trashed. The couch frame was broken in the middle, sagging downward to the floor in a pathetic slump. The monitors were all cracked and broken while the kitchen table lay crushed against one of the far walls in jagged pieces. Bits of the walls and support pillars were damaged and lying about the floor like some bizarre obstacle course that would have Leo itching to try it.

'_Leo_! _Splinter_! _Everyone_!' Don's eyes widened as he began searching anew, with more urgency than before. "Master Splinter?" he called out, a bit of a choke in his voice. He paused a moment to regain control of himself before he tried again. "Master Splinter? Leo?" he managed louder looking about the room. "Raph? Mikey?" Only silence answered him. "Anybody?" he finally called half-heartedly.

There was no answer to his calls save the hollow echo of his own voice as it bounced back towards him, the evidence of Donnie's worry clear to his ears. There was no one there. Not even the typical New York City sewer rat. Hell, Don couldn't even see a cockroach. There was nothing there and there hadn't been anyone for years as evident by the thick coating of dust on everything and the broken spider webs tucked away in the darken corners. There was nothing that so much as indicated that anyone had _ever_ lived there.

It just could not compute in Don's mind what possibly could have happened that would have brought the lair to such a state. Everything had been fine the day before, but now a dark, heavy feeling of dread began to curdle in the pit of his stomach as he examined each and every nook and cranny of the room, finding no sign as to what had could have caused such mass destruction. Don didn't like this; not one bit.

Slipping his Bo staff back in his belt, Don looked around the room, for once at a complete loss at what to do next. He frowned as he began going over everything in his mind to see if he could possibly come up with an explanation for the lair's dilapidated appearance. He decided to start at the beginning but his expression soon became one of panic when he realized that he couldn't even remember what he had eaten for breakfast that morning! His own mind was as empty as the room he stood in as he tried to bring up any memory of what could have happened to the lair.

His mind was just a total and complete blank and that scared Donatello more than anything he could have ever thought possible. Taking a small step forward, he stumbled a bit before he quickly braced himself against a piece of rubble. He closed his eyes as he took a deep, calming breath. "Okay, okay Donnie calm down and let's look at this logically…" he muttered to himself. "One: I woke to an abandoned lair. Scary but I can handle this. Two: I have no idea what happened to put it in such a state. There are signs of a battle here and there but not enough for this level of destruction. Which brings me to observation number three… It obviously happened a long time ago…"

With a soft growl he snapped his head forward sharply, banging it once against the item he was leaning upon and blinked at the small, hallow sound. Pulling back slightly, he let out a soft, bitter chuckle as he recognized his own half-built computer tower. "Typical…" he grumbled as he took another relaxing breath and growled again when it was obvious that it wasn't doing anything to calm his frazzled nerves.

His hands were shaking and he quickly clamped them together to try and quell the trembling somewhat. Glancing down at them he studied them quickly. They were the same hands that he remembered so whatever had happened to the lair obviously hadn't happened to him. At least that he could remember. Don's eyes widened as he quickly took mental stock of his person. Nothing was wounded or bleeding, that was a good sign and there didn't seem to be any internal damage that he could detect. Letting out a sigh of relief, Don began looking around the room again.

Taking a small step back, Don looked around the lair again and tried to figure out what to do next. There was still no sign of his family and Donnie knew, just knew that they were no longer there. He had to find them but how? It was obvious that all his computer equipment was complete scrap so there was no possible way for him to track the signals in the shell cells. He had to search for clues but he had no idea where to even begin.

His body seemed to have other ideas however as he soon found himself standing in the broken doorway of Splinter's meditation room. Don honestly couldn't remember walking over to the doorway and didn't even realize he had until he was standing directly in front of it. The door itself was completely gone and Don had a clear view of the inside of the small, familiar room.

He just _stared_, surprise jolting through him as he took in the room. His heart had hoped to see his father there, going over scrolls while sipping the bitter tea the Don never could manage to choke down. His head however had expected to find more rubble and the room in shambles like the rest of the lair. What he did find however was a room that had been completely stripped barren.

Everything was gone. The low table that held Splinters inks and kanji brushes; the small bookshelf of scrolls and books that Splinter had rescued from Master Yoshi's place after the Shredder had left. Even the pictures of himself and his brothers that had been scattered about the room in places of honor were gone. The room was now just an empty space encompassed by four walls.

Don swallowed heavily as he stepped back and turned away from the eerie sight, a small chill running down his spine to the tip of his tail as he began walking away. He didn't know why it was, but he had to see his brother's rooms for himself. He just had to see them, despite the logic in his mind that he was only going to find more of the same there. The sudden need began to overwhelm him and he found himself quickening his steps as he reached the first door; Raph's door… Or at least what was left of it. The door had been busted in, like all the others he had encountered so far but this one had been shoved to the side almost as if to allow someone passage into the room.

Don just stared at the broken wood for a long, long moment both needing to see what was in that room and dreading it all the same. Finally brining up his gaze he looked into the room and a whoosh of air left him as he heaved a relieved sigh. He didn't know what would have been worse- the finding of his brother's broken body or the now clearly empty room that echoed his father's study.

With a small frown, Don stepped into the room to survey the damage. It was a bitter pill to swallow to see Raph's room so clearly abandoned, broken bits of furniture obviously left to rot. Don soon felt himself scowling as he glared at the empty room accusingly. "Damn it guys, where are you?" he muttered as he looked around.

The weights were still shoved into the corner but like the room before, any and all personal items were gone. Even Raph's extra Sai's were no longer resting in the small chest that sat in the corner, sagging with mildew and rot. Don wrinkled his nose as he took another quick survey of the room for any clue as to where his brother could have possibly gone. He quickly squashed that small voice of fear and doubt that continued to needle him and mentally yelled at it that they were most defiantly still alive and that he didn't care if all the evidence pointed to the contrary.

He swiftly moved from Raph's room to Leo's and once again found a repeat of the same. A broken bed sagged in one corner while items lay strewed about the floor and all of Leo's personal things gone without a trace. Don shook his head as he toed the layer of dust on the floor before he looked around again. The half melted candles on the shelf by the bed mocked him, as if they were the ones who had slowly burned the life out of the lair with each drip of the wax. Don found himself glaring at them and for the life of him couldn't explain why. Frowning, he turned and began looking through the rubble. Picking up the small stand that used to house Leo's katanas, he set it back where it belonged. It looked out of place being the only thing that wasn't lying askew. Don didn't care.

With a sigh he moved on to the next room in line and was surprised to find some personal items still there, unlike the rooms previous. Mikey's room was always a wreck but to see the broken, abandoned action figures, the smashed up game consoles and cracked and fragmented movie discs thrown everywhere made him wince. Mikey could be a slob more often than not, but he did take good care with his collection. To see them just lying broken and forgotten hit Donatello hard. He tried to swallow and had to compose himself before attempting again. Steeling his nerves he did his now routine of searching the room completely for any clues as to what could have possibly happened and for a fourth time he came up empty.

He couldn't stop himself as he found himself picking up a few of the lesser broken toys and setting them back on the now crooked shelf where they used to sit at a place of honor. He stared at them for a long moment while their own frozen plastic gazes almost mocked him for trying to restore some semblance of normalcy in a room so obviously not but like Leo's stand, Don felt compelled to do so. These items meant so much to his siblings that it was almost sacrilege for him to leave them abandoned on the ground. Don forced himself to turn away as he leaned against the wall, just staring at the room as he tried to calm himself.

"Damn it! It just doesn't make any sense!" he growled as he banged a fist against the stone wall behind him, supporting his sagging body as he leaned back and stared at the darken ceiling. He found himself counting to ten and then counted back down to zero more than a few times before he was calm enough to finally push himself off the wall and drag himself out of the room.

He had to keep one hand on the wall beside him as he began moving down towards the next door in line. Don found his trembling starting anew and increasing in intensity as he finally found himself at the final door in the small hallway. The only door that was still intact as a matter of fact. The only door that looked as if it had been untouched in ages… His own door.

Donatello stared at it a long, long moment as his thoughts whirled around in his mind. Nothing made any sense and the only explanation the supposed brainiest of the team could come up with was that he was somehow stuck in some bizarre, terrifying nightmare. But the feel of the cool, damp stone under his feet felt to real, the feeling of the doorknob under his fingers was a cool, familiar feeling in his grasp and the instantly recognizable squeak of the door opening was a soothing balm to Donnie's frazzled nerves.

If he had been expecting to find yet another room destroyed and left completely in shambles then Don would have found himself severely disappointed as he stepped into his familiar, cluttered bedroom that looked more like a mad scientist lab than a room of rest. Don nearly stepped back out into the hall just to check to see if everything else had gone back to the way it was convinced it had to have been a dream after all but the layer of dust on his desk was the only evidence that this room like all the others hadn't had an occupant in years.

Don took another deep breath as he stepped into the room and looked around. It was completely untouched. There wasn't anything not where Donnie had left it. It was almost scarier than what Don had come across in the rest of the lair. Everything was completely the same as he remembered it. Donnie stepped into the room hesitantly and walked over to his table. He looked down at the device that took up the center of the clutter. A modified transmitter that he remembered working on just the night before, toiling away until the wee hours of the morning. However the device didn't have so much rust on it the last time he saw it.

Setting the item back down he wandered around the room, allowing his fingers to drift over each different item as he re-familiarized himself with each one of them. He shook his head as he looked over his computer desk before he looked up and caught himself in the small beveled mirror he used on some of his more delicate work. Shaking hands reached out and lifted up the piece before Don realized it and he found himself staring down into his own, apprehensive reflection.

A sigh of relief escaped him before he could help himself as he found himself looking just the same as ever. There was nothing different about himself so now Don found himself really puzzled. Partial memory loss could have explained why he awoke to find everything so different but while the lair looked to have been abandoned for years, Don still found himself staring at his own sixteen-year-old visage. '_So what the shell happened_?' he frowned as he set the mirror back to its original spot carefully.

He moved over to the bed and found himself sitting down onto it as the mattress gave way beneath him. Don frowned as the disruption of dust assaulted his senses and he blinked rapidly to ensure none of it got into his eyes. The dust settled and Don sighed as he looked about the room. Nothing made a shred of sense and Don felt as if his head might just explode as different scenarios flew through his head. The lair was clearly abandoned and had been for some time yet Don himself was still the same as always.

What in the world had happened to the lair? Or was it what had happened to him? Was that even possible? Had something happened to him instead of the lair? Why was it that the lair was abandoned to begin with? Where had his family gone? Why weren't they still there? What would have made them leave?

Donatello shook his head as he finally heaved himself to his feet. He certainly wasn't going to get any answers just sitting around doing nothing that was for sure. Looking back around the room, Don began searching for anything that may help him but everything was either too degraded or just worthless all together. Looking over the room one last time, Don finally turned and began making his way back towards the main room of the lair.

Ending up right back where he started, Donatello paused as he tried to figure out what his next step would be. '_Okay,_' he thought to himself. '_It's obvious that no one is here so where would they go_?' The name "April" instantly popped into his head and Don nodded, agreeing with the logic. If his brothers had gone anywhere then it was more than likely that April or maybe Casey would know where, but how to get there?

Don wasn't even sure what time it was and any clocks he had seen so far had all been broken and completely useless. "Well, at least I could head up to the warehouse," Don mumbled to himself as he turned towards the lair's hidden elevator. "Note to self Donnie," he muttered as he climbed over the wreckage towards the doors. "Stop the monologue."

It didn't take him that long to make his way up to the surface and finally come to the main doorway of the building. He frowned at the rotted door that hung crooked in the frame and with a bit of a shove, he finally managed to get the door to fall inward. With a shake of the head, he made his way into the room and glanced around, the same dreaded awe overtaking him as he looked around. "Whoa," he muttered under his breath as he took in the damage. "The entire lair is trashed and even the _warehouse_."

Don's eyes went immediately to each and every one of the turtle's vehicles and he shook his head as he crossed many of them off as total losses. "Huh, the Tunneler still looks like it's in one piece…" Don blinked and shook his head as he rolled his eyes at his continued to talk to himself. '_Stop that,_' he chastised himself before he turned and continued onward towards the large hole he now saw in the far wall where night was just beginning to overtake the city, finding himself speaking aloud again. "But this place feels like it's been abandoned for a long time… _None of this makes any sense_."

Don stepped away from the warehouse and froze as he took in the surroundings. The lair and the warehouse it seemed weren't the only things that were trashed; it looked as if there had been a war going on. Rubble could be seen everywhere and all of the buildings looked old and abandoned as well. Don frowned as he observed each and every change from what he could remember and shook his head at all the differences that immediately came to mind.

For one, there were absolutely no cars on the road, _extremely_ odd for a New York City street. Another was that there were a lot more buildings around than he remembered, and for some reason, they all had smokestacks coming out of their roofs. "Factories?" Don muttered as he glanced at each of them in turn. He could see even more smoke stacks off in the distance and frowned at them. '_Doesn't that violate some air-environmental law or something_?' he wondered as he looked up at the dense smog overhead before he shrugged it off. So far nothing had made any sense, so why should the violation of air laws be any different.

With another frown he glanced around, trying to figure out what would be the best route to April's when he could suddenly hear the sound of helicopter blades off in the distance. Donnie chuckled. "Well, at least there are people around," he said but soon the laugh tapered off as he realized that the helicopter was headed right for him, the searchlight shinning on the street below.

Don's first instinct was to turn and head right back into the warehouse when the searchlight finally came to rest upon him and he was completely blinded by the bright light. The screech of cars coming to a quick stop assaulted his senses and a loud voice began blaring over a loudspeaker.

"Attention citizen! Place your hand's in the air and drop your weapons!"

Donatello blinked under the harsh light as he could see figures climbing out of the cars, weapons held firmly at the ready. He knew that he couldn't do anything however as they had yet to do anything to him. He had no choice here. He had to follow their orders until he had a chance to figure out what the shell was going on around there. '_This day officially sucks,_' Don thought as he stared at the group of humans before him.

"Repeat," the voice blared again. "Hands up and _drop your weapons_!"

Donnie gritted his teeth as he raised his arms and frowned at them. The five humans began walking towards him when four of them stopped and the one in the middle continued towards him, gun aimed right at him. Don's eyes widened as the man's shoulder came into view of the helicopters searchlight and Don could now have a clear view of the Shredders symbol emblazed on the man's coat.

'_What the _shell?' Donatello screamed silently. '_They work for Shredder_? _But that's impossible_! _These guys are defiantly not the Foot_! _I doubt that they're even ninja_!'

Don had to think fast as he looked around at the group and began to calculate the odds and the chances of him getting out of there alive. They all had guns and while he was a skilled fighter, there were too many of them for him to get away clean. There were going to be some injury but he had no choice. He quickly reached back and snagged his Bo staff as he took up a defensive stance, watching as the humans continued to walk closer.

'_This is going to be a hard fight,_' Don thought as he took a small step back.

Suddenly a flash of silver passed before his eyes and the humans stopped as the one in front looked down at the ground at his feet. Don blinked as he looked down as well and stared in shock as he saw the three ninja stars embedded in the ground. '_Shuriken_?' he thought in surprised. '_But who_?'

Obviously the humans were wondering the same thing as the leader suddenly shouted, "On the roof! Get a light on him!"

Don jerked in surprise and he turned and looked upward at the dark figure that leaned over the building's edge. The searchlight swung from him to the figure and Don could feel his jaw dropping. That figure was instantly recognizable as one of his brothers. He couldn't help but feel relieved even as the humans continued to yell.

"Fire! Open fire!"

Don felt himself for once at a complete loss as the humans took aim and fired at the figure on the roof. The other turtle instantly dodged and sprinted across the roof to the other end, skillfully avoiding the light before he took a quick leap off the building. Don could do nothing more than watch in shock and awe as the figure landed perfectly before seeking shelter behind an old, dilapidated car wreck, narrowly avoiding the bullets.

The humans instantly forgot about him as they took off after the figure. Don knew that he had to help in some way but in truth, found himself unable to move as he watched them continue to barrage the car with a hail of bullets. Two of them jumped onto the hood and trunk respectively and just annihilated the cab of the car in a matter of seconds. Donatello instantly took a step forward, his eyes widening in fear as he took in the mangled heap of the car… with no one inside.

He blinked in surprise as the hood of the car suddenly was pushed open from the inside, sending the human flying into the body of his partner as the shadowed figure leapt out of his hiding spot and did a perfect flip in the air, avoiding each and every bullet as he quickly knocked the gun out of one then two of the soldiers hands, quickly knocking them to the ground before spinning around to deal with a third one.

The figure slid to a stop before him as he lashed out with his weapon that Donatello had so for been unable to identify but he recognized it now instantly as it cracked across yet another's jaw. He just stared in complete awe as he finally knew who it was that had shown up to save his tail but it just couldn't be! "Mikey?" he gasped as he continued to watch the figure thoroughly trounce the humans. It just couldn't be but it had to be. Only Mikey could use the nun chucks that flawlessly, but something was wrong. There was a bit of a jerkiness to Mikey's moves and Don couldn't put his finger on it as he continued to watch the battle.

One went flying and landed perfectly in the still open hood of the smoking car and soon another one crashed into the first as he too was thrown. Don's eyes went wide however as he saw the sudden glint of a sword and he started to move forward to help when the figure, Mikey, calmly and deafly knocked the katana our of the man's hands before sending him too into the car's front, the hood landing with a clang as it fell closed over them.

Mikey slipped his nun chucks into his holster and Don had just begun to do the same when the searchlight from the helicopter suddenly zeroed in on the other turtle. Donatello had almost forgotten about it. He could now see the tell tale flicker of orange as Mikey quickly jumped out of the beam of light and landed next to one of the forgotten guns, grabbing it as he continued to flip and jump away.

Don could only stare in morbid fascination as Mikey took aim and actually fired, quickly taking out the three vehicles with deadly precision before turning his arm and aiming at the helicopter still in flight. Don watched as the helicopter tried to get away, faltering somewhat as something vital, probably a fuel line was hit and the helicopter began to lose altitude, spinning wildly before it disappeared over the building. He could still hear it though and Don cringed, as there was a sudden explosion and a bright flash of light as the ground beneath him shook.

Don shook his head as he sheathed his Bo, saying a quick prayer for the fallen before he turned and looked over at Mikey. He never really knew that Mikey could fight that well even though he always knew that there was potential under that goofy smile. That didn't matter at the moment however and he could figure out how Mikey became so good later. For now, he had found at least one of his brothers and that was enough. Maybe he could finally get some answers.

The figure stood slowly and turned to him, the gun falling haphazardly from loose fingers as Donatello broke out into a wide grin. "Mikey!" he cried as he stopped before him. "Am I glad to see you!" he smiled.

There was silence from the other turtle for a long moment before a harsh, deep voice spoke, shocking Donnie at the gruffness of it. "So," the figure said. "It's really you. You came back."

'_Came back_?' Don blinked in surprise as he tried to figure out what Mikey could possibly be talking about when the figure began to walk forward and Donatello's eyes widened even further with every step. As the larger figure stepped into the light he could now clearly see ever scar that marred his brother's body before his eyes zeroed in on Mikey's left arm. Rather, what was left of Mikey's left arm.

Don's eyes flew open at the sight of the missing limb and he now realized why there had been something odd about Mikey's fighting. He had fought that whole battle and thoroughly overpowered the human's soldiers while only using his right arm. "Mikey… your arm…" he gasped as he stared horrified. He couldn't believe it as he looked over the other turtle and just stared at the missing arm and multitude of scars. "What happened to your arm?"

Mikey glanced at the limb before he turned hard eyes on Donatello. "You're the one that's got some questions to answer," he growled.

Donnie gaped as he took a step closer to the other turtle, staring at his "baby brother" in complete shock. This was not the Michelangelo he remembered but there was no possibly way he could be mistaken. It was Mikey before him, in a new belt and holster with… were those small flash bombs attached to his shoulder strap?

"Where the shell have you been all these years?" Mikey snarled as Don glanced over the ensemble.

Donatello stopped his examination as he looked up and blinked in surprise as the words suddenly registered. " 'All these years'?" he repeated puzzled.

Mikey leaned forward and poked him in the chest as his eyes narrowed. "You've been gone over thirty years Donatello."

The words stabbed Donnie more firmly than a knife to the chest as he stared at Mikey in complete astonishment. "Th-Thirty _years_?" he gasped in surprise. '_That's impossible,_' Don thought in shock as he stared at his brother. "It… It can't be," he murmured but he knew that Mikey had to be telling the truth.

Everything fit. Why the lair was destroyed without him knowing how. How the entire city could have been changed almost completely overnight. How his own brother could suddenly look so different and attain so many scars. '_Could I really have been gone thirty years_?' he wondered. '_But… I haven't changed. So how_?'

"Can be and is," Mikey's snarl brought Donatello out of his thoughts sharply. "We thought you were dead," Mikey continued softly before his expression hardened and he leaned forward with a dark glare. "How could you just abandon us like that?" he nearly shouted, pain clearly heard in his voice.

Donnie jerked in surprise. "I didn't," he insisted as his mind whirled about with questions. "I would never abandon you guys," and it was the truth. No matter how this situation had come about, Don knew in his heart that he would have never left the others willingly. There had to be some sort of explanation for all this. There just had to be.

Mikey's glare didn't change however and Donnie could tell that he didn't believe him and as Mikey continued to glare at him Don knew he had to give some explanation. He swallowed nervously before he spoke again. "One minute we were all in the lair together," he began, "next minute… I woke up here. I don't know how…"

Mikey just stared at him for a long, long time before he let out a small chuckle. "So the turtle with the big brain finally doesn't have all the answers. Who'd of thunk it?" Donatello glared at him at the jibe.

Mikey let out another small bitter laugh and looked as if he was going to say something more when his own eyes widened and he quickly lunged forward. Don gasped when the other turtle suddenly grabbed his arm and jerked him forward, further into the pale light of the moon and out of the warehouse's shadow. Mikey nearly shoved his face into Don's own as he turned him this way and that, examining every part of him in the dim light. Don cringed as the grip on his arm tightened with incredible strength and his own arm began to throb as he was yanked around like a rag doll.

Mikey finally stopped pulling him around and Don looked up in surprise as Mikey continued to stare at him, his eyes examining every inch of his face. "No…" Mikey muttered. "It can't be…" he released Don's arm and quickly took a step back, never taking his eyes off of Donatello. "It's impossible. You still look exactly the same as the last time I saw you!"

Don looked up at Mikey sadly and gave a small nod of his head. "Yeah, I know. That's what I was trying to tell you. That-"

Mikey didn't seem to hear him however as he continued to just stare at Donatello completely horrified. "How is this possible?" the other interrupted. "You don't look a day over sixteen!"

Don frowned at him. "That's because I _am_ sixteen!" he said firmly, glad that Mikey had finally stopped snarling and finally _looked_ at him. "That's what I've been trying to tell you! How could I be gone over thirty years? It's impossible!"

Mikey just stared at him before he shook his head and let out a low, bitter chuckle. "Well fuck," he muttered, the swear word jolting Don out of his anger as Mikey brought his somewhat hysterical laughter under control. "What the hell happened to you Donnie?"

Don could only shrug as he stared at Mikey with a confused, desperate look. "I… I don't know," he finally said, fear lacing his words as he began shaking. The world around him began spinning, the day's events finally seeming to catch up with him as everything began to blur. "I just don't know."

He could hear Mikey curse again and Donnie couldn't help but think that he would probably never get used to that as the world disappeared and he fainted dead away.

-To Be continued


	2. Perfectly Tarnished: The Broken Future

Never The Same Again Part One: Perfectly Tarnished

_By Black Dragon Queen_

Author's Note: There are no notes. Enjoy!

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**Chapter Two: The Broken Future**

Michelangelo cursed as he lunged forward before Donatello had even begun to sway. He had just managed to catch the other turtle before he hit the pavement and cringed at the dead weight that nearly pulled him down. Wincing, he shifted Don's limp weight and glanced around the perimeter apprehensively. When he had jogged towards the old warehouse for his semi-annual run around the old haunts, the last thing he would have ever anticipated was to find a legion of soldiers cornering one of his brothers. That the turtle in question turned out to be his long lost brother Donatello whom he hadn't seen in over thirty years was shocking almost to the point of insanity.

And yet here was Donatello, a firm weight in the crook of his arm. Mikey huffed as he glanced down at the unconscious turtle. This was hardly the way he had imagined the possible reunion, and he had come up with some whoppers over the past thirty years, as he looked down at familiar face. It was so bizarre. He looked _exactly _the same as the last time he saw him. The young, perfect face void of all the scars and harsh lines that he and his other two brothers all now wore hardened by over thirty years of intense battle and sorrowful woes.

The fact that Donatello was still only sixteen had completely thrown him for a loop and was the last thing he would have ever expected. Mike had no idea where too even begin with the wrongness of it all. Donatello's age was just one of the many questions that he had but currently, he didn't have time to try and figure it out. The soldiers would have called the sighting in before he arrived on the scene and that meant that he had to get them out of there, _fast_.

Shifting Donatello's weight again, he struggled a moment to get him in a better hold and started to hightail it out of there. Mike had gained more upper body strength over the years and worked to strengthen his muscles but his missing arm still hampered him more than he liked and Don's Bo was defiantly no help. Pausing momentarily in the shadows of an ally, he managed to shift Donatello over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and finally managed to get situated enough to move quickly.

He avoided most of the sewers, the Shredder having wired a majority of them with booby traps and video monitors long ago. Instead he stayed in the shadows of the alleyways and darkened buildings as he made his way across the city. It was harsh going, more than normal because he couldn't take to the rooftop but he couldn't risk it. Not with such a precious cargo. A cargo that had many, many questions to answer and he wasn't even sure that Donatello had any answers to give.

It took him nearly four hours, dodging in shadows, backtracking, and leaving false trails in case of any followers but he was not going to take _any_ chances. He had only just found Donatello; he wasn't about to lose him to Shredder. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon when he finally arrived at the old mansion, the current hideout of the rebels for the month. He sighed in relief as he came upon the perimeter, stopping behind the shell of another rusted out car.

Carefully, he eased Donnie off of his shoulder and leaned him against the rusted out door of the vehicle, steadying his head before it could slump forward. He knew the sentries knew he was there; he had trained them after all and smiled softly at the small bird call that could just barely be heard. Ensuring that Don was balanced, he whistled the answering call and waited for the two to meet him at his position.

"Mike!" A voice called out quietly and soon a face appeared out of the shadows. A young boy of no more than seventeen smiled as he quickly made his way to the shelter of the car. "Man, this is a surprise! We weren't expecting you for another week!"

"Hey Ricky," Mike smiled and clamped his hand over the others forearm in greeting. "Sorry to just drop in on ya like this but I had some… extenuating circumstances." Mike tilted his head towards the slumped figure and Rick's eyes went wide.

"Who the hell is _he_?" the boy demanded, his hand tightening on his gun momentarily.

"Defiantly not Leo or Raph," a second voice spoke up behind them.

Mike shook his head as he turned towards the other guard that was already leaning over Donatello, the turtles chin in his hand as he turned Don's limp head this way and that, examining him. "No, he isn't," Mike said with a frown. "And if you don't take your hand off of him in the next second, I'll be taking it for myself Jordan."

The older man chuckled but he released Don and stood up. "He a clone?" he asked, unperturbed by Mike's not so subtle threat. "Something metal head come up with?"

Mike scowled as he stood and began to gather Don up again. "Shut up and help me tough guy," he snarled.

Rick was instantly at Don's other side, helping Michelangelo balance the weight but Jordan just chuckled before finally pushing the rail-thin teenager away and took Don's weight himself. "Okay, okay. I got it," he said to Mike. "He's special to you ain't he?"

Mike just grunted as they began making their way to the building. "You have no idea."

* * *

"Who the hell has the schematics for that rail station?" April O'Neil snapped as she looked over her crew. "Angel should have had it an hour ago!"

"We had them here boss! I swear it!" a young girl replied as she went through a pile of papers and maps on the floor. "I just saw it. They were right here."

April sighed as she wandered over to the girl's side and bent down to help her. "I know Sue, we'll just keep looking for it until we find it."

Sue nodded and turned to go through the stack again when another member came over. "I have 'em boss," he said, waving the manila envelope over his head.

April sighed as she took the file. "Thanks Bobby," she smiled before she frowned at him. "Now get back to work," she said in a stern voice.

"No problem," Bobby just nodded with a cheeky grin and Sue giggled as he mocked saluted before sauntering away. April just shook her head as she pulled out the stack of papers and started going over the plans and photographs. There was a staccato rap at the main door and April barely moved as everyone instantly recognized the latest in secret knocks. It wasn't until a familiar voice called out did she look up from the papers.

"Hey rebel leader! Got any room for a couple of miscreants?"

April grinned as she stood and whirled around towards the main door. "Mike! You're early!" she cried as she made her way to the turtle. Only to stop mid-step as the group stepped into the building's dim light and she saw the slump form being supported by Mike and Jordan. "Who is…? Is that…? But it can't be…" April stuttered as she stared at the unconscious figure.

"It is," Mike grunted as he and Jordan maneuvered Don into a dilapidated easy chair by the main table.

"Oh my God…" April whispered, her eyes never leaving the limp figure. "Donatello…"

Jordan's head snapped up and he quickly turned his gaze to the still snoozing turtle. He looked back at Mike who just waited for him to say something, usually something contemptuous with just a hint of sarcasm. Jordan simply raised an eyebrow. "Kind of young to be your long lost brother, ain't he?"

"Jordan, get back to patrol," April snapped, glaring at him.

Jordan shrugged before he turned and headed back out the building, waving over his shoulder as he went. "Call me if ya need me."

April shook her head as she glanced back at the still unconscious turtle slumped in one of the few functioning chairs in the whole building. "Donatello… I can't believe it."

"Believe it," Mike sighed as he perched himself on the armrest. "Nearly knocked me for a loop when I first saw him."

"But I don't understand. Why now after all these years?" April murmured as she continued to stare at the other turtle, still unable to take her gaze away. "I almost would say it was my age getting to me but since you see him too…"

Mike chuckled. "Hell of a day, huh?"

"I'll say…" April muttered as she finally was able to turn and look at Michelangelo. "So what do we do now?"

"For now, let him sleep," Mikey sighed as he pushed the trails of Don's mask off his shoulder. "Though, could we possibly move him somewhere a little bit more comfortable… and out of sight…"

April blinked as she whirled around to find very nearly every single person was walking as slowly as possible and throwing curious glances at the new arrival. They had all heard Jordan's statement about Donatello and each and every one of them were curious. Most of them had heard the many arguments between the three turtle brothers over their missing fourth member and those who hadn't had heard from the ones who had.

"Of course," April said and quickly went to Donnie's side. "We'll put him in my room."

No one so much as dared to offer them help, knowing that it would more than likely be refused as April and Mike handled the limp turtle like a piece of fine china. It was slow going making their way out of the main room and down the hall over the debris that had been to large to move. Nudging the door open with a toe, the two soon made their way over to the sagging bed in the center of the room and eased Don down onto it.

"Does he need medical attention?" April asked looking him over apprehensively as it finally dawned on her that Don, hell, both of them might need help.

Mike just shook his head as he gently leaned Don's Bo against the wall. "No. I think that everything just kind of hit him really hard." He paused before he let out a bitter chuckle. "Informational overload I suppose." April looked over as Mike slumped down onto the mattress next to Don.

April frowned at him. "Do _you_ need medical attention?" she pressed. "You were fighting, after all."

Again, Mike shook his head. "Nah. It was only a scouting unit out. Not a full scale search party."

"Where in the world did you find him?" she asked, changing the subject as she pulled out the threadbare blanket and covered Don, tucking it under him.

"The old warehouse," Mike told her. "Surrounded by patrol soldiers."

April blinked as her head snapped up. "They know about him?"

Mike nodded miserably. "They saw him."

"Damn…" April hissed as she looked down at the oblivious ninja. "Then we'd better move as soon as possible. I don't want to take any chances."

Mike just nodded. "Probably a good idea," he sighed. "If Shredder knows he's back, he'll probably double his search efforts for him and in turn us." Mike just looked at Donnie for a long moment before quickly held back a sob. "Oh God April… I can't even believe it's even real!" he said breathlessly, reaching over towards Don's face but stopping just shy of actually touching him. "I keep thinking that any second I'm going to wake up and he's going to be gone again."

April quickly moved forward and wrapped her friend in a hug as Mike pulled his arm back and just continued to stare at the other turtle. "Mike…" she began slowly. "You know… Jordan's right. He does look kind of-"

"Young?" Mike finished with a bitter chuckle.

April gave him a small smile as she stepped back, giving her long time friend some breathing room. "Yeah, young. I mean, my God Mikey," she slipped back into the old nickname so easily, "he looks _exactly_ the same as he did thirty years ago."

"Yeah, I noticed," Mike drawled as he looked back at Don's peaceful face.

April frowned as she looked over Mike's own slouched form. "Did he say anything? Tell you where he's been all these years?"

Mike sighed as he slumped even further, his forehead nearly touching the mattress. "Only that the last thing he remembered was one second we were together in the lair and the next, he was here."

April frowned as she glanced down at the unconscious turtle. "That doesn't make any sense."

Mike let out a small snort. "Tell me about it."

April turned back to the other turtle, instantly seeing all the stress radiating from his slumped form. She bit her lip for a moment before she spoke again. "Do you want me to try and get in touch with Raph and Leo? Call them here to see Don?"

Mike didn't move for a long moment before he finally sat back up. "No. Not yet," he said firmly and April blinked in surprised.

"But, he's their brother too…"

"April, you know what those two are like now," Mike interrupted as he rubbed his forehead tiredly. "Let's at least wait until we know a bit more about the situation before we call those two in. Knowing Raph's temper, words may be said in the heat of the moment that he won't be able to take back." He sighed as he finally reached those last few inches and stroked Don's brow. "We were all hurt when he disappeared and Raph, in his own stellar way, managed to turn that hurt into bitterness and resentment. Especially after father died."

"And Leo?" April asked quietly.

He shook his head. "Still in denial about everything and Donnie will only blame himself. You know how he got… gets. " Mike groaned as he dropped his head into his hand. "God this is confusing."

"You're telling me," she muttered before she turned and began heading out the door. "I'll start everyone packing and we'll move to the next hideout we scouted last week. Angel's still on that tanker run so we'll have to meet up with her group in transit."

Mike nodded as he continued to stare down at Don, unwilling to look away for fear that Don might just go up in smoke. "How's her team doing?"

"Basic hit and run terrorism," April announced. "Should be routine."

Mike growled as he began stroking Don's head again. "You should know by now April," he said softly, "nothing is ever routine."

* * *

Donatello was slow to wake up. He had what seemed to be the largest migraine yet to date and the _last_ thing he wanted to do was crawl out from under the covers, but unfortunately the incisive prod at his side refused to stop. Knowing his brothers as he did, they would not stop until he finally dragged his tail out of bed even if he refused to move for five hours. He should know since he had tried.

Leo was nothing but tenacious when he wanted something and would just keep prodding him until he finally acknowledged the eldest of the four. Mikey would usually jump up onto the bed with him and tell him in excited, rapid detail all that had happened in that morning's latest episode of his favorite shows until Don finally kicked him out. Raph by far was the worst however. He would prod him for no more than three minutes, curse, leave the room for four and return baring a bucket of cold water which he would then proceed to dump all over the snoozing Don. Don usually was up and out of bed before Raph could make it to the door after the first six or so treatments of an icy cold wake up call.

Since there was no rapid chatter and the prodding had gone on for more than the three minute maximum, then it had to be Leo who was trying to coax him out of the warm cocoon. He groaned as he tried to shuffle away from the still prodding digit but shell if the finger didn't follow him. The headache had only gotten worse as time had gone on and Don was even more reluctant to get out of bed but what choice did he have? He groaned as he pulled the cover up under his chin. "Uhg… Tylenol… need Tylenol…" he mumbled as he rolled over and buried his face in the pillow once again.

There was a dry chuckle and an unknown voice spoke up. "Haven't had Tylenol in years. Sorry Don."

Don's eyes flew open wide and he was immediately jumping off the bed, placing it between him and the unknown voice. His hand had went out for his Bo but unfortunately had only encased empty air so Don settled to falling back in a defensive stance as he eyed the figure before him. The other person had watched every single one of his movements in silence before there was a sigh. The humming sound of what could possibly be a small generator starting up echoed in the room and soon there was a soft glow of light.

Don blinked as the figure was now clearly seen and he had to keep himself in check when it wasn't a figure he recognized. It took his brain a while to finally catch up with him as he tried to shake the fuzz out of his head. The other turtle waited patiently until everything finally came back to him. The broken lair, the changed city, the soldiers and finally; "Mikey…" he murmured as he came out of his stance. "Shell, I'm sorry about that. I… I just forgot."

Mike nodded as he picked up Don's Bo staff and held it out to him from across the bed. "No problem, I forgot you wouldn't be as used to the dark as we are now."

Don stood there awkwardly for a moment, still trying to determine if this was a dream or some horrific nightmare that he just couldn't wake up out of. What the hell did one say to one's younger brother who was now thirty years older than yourself? With nothing left to do, he slowly made his way back to the bed and shuffled a bit with the cover, trying to put it back to rights when a hand gently pulled it out of his grasp. "Leave it," Mike told him softly. "It has to be packed anyway."

"Packed?" Don gave Mike a confused glance before he finally took the opportunity to look about the room. "Where are we anyway?" he asked as he examined the shambled room, taking note of the plywood over the windows, encasing the room in darkness save the small lantern-like object that Mikey had set aside.

"One of the many rebel hideouts," Mike replied.

"Rebel's?"

"The few humans who have formed a resistance against the Shredder," Mike explained. "We're in the middle of moving to another location."

"Why?" Don asked surprised.

Mike sighed as he started shoving the blanket and pillow into a duffel bag he had pulled out from under the bed. "We move every few weeks or so but since those soldiers undoubtedly saw you then Shredder more than likely knows you're back as well, so it was decided to move now before he puts the city on lock down."

Donatello just gaped at him as he absorbed the information. "You're moving because of… me?"

Mike nodded. "We weren't the only one's wondering where you disappeared to, you know."

Now Don was really shocked. "He's going to lock down the city because of _me_?"

Mikey just gave him a hard look. "Yeah, he's looking for you."

Don just continued to stare at the other turtle in stunned disbelief but before his brain could instruct his mouth to ask one of the many dozen questions that ran through his head, someone at the door knocked. Mikey just handed Don the duffel bag as he stood. "Stay here," he ordered as he turned and headed for the wooden paneling.

Donatello sagged on the bed as his mind whirled around with questions. There were so many to ask but as Mike came back into the room Don knew that now was not the time to ask them. "Well?"

Mike nodded as he snagged the lantern. "Everyone's set and one of the teams managed to get their mission done early so we're out of here." Mike turned and Don quickly hopped the bed and followed after him. "Stay close to me," Mike was saying as they made their way down the hall, "and don't mind the stares. Everyone's used to me so you being a mutant turtle isn't what's bothering them but rather the fact that you just showed up out of thin air. They _all_ know the story."

"Great, like I wasn't uncomfortable already…"

Mike glanced over his shoulder when he stopped dead in the hallway, just shy of them entering the main room. "We'll get it sorted Donnie," he said softly.

Don managed a wan smile. "I know… it just really irritates me when there are questions that I can't answer."

Mike chuckled as he tapped Don's arm with the lantern. "God I've missed your tenaciousness."

"Thanks Mikey," Don's smile managed to morph into a true one at Mike's words.

There was a dry chuckle. "That's one of the things that changed," the other said as he turned and started walking again. "It's just 'Mike' now…"

Don almost stumbled in surprised. "Oh… right. Sorry." Don frowned as he looked down at the duffle bag in his hands. "It may take me a while to get used to that…"

There was a heavy sigh. "It's okay Donnie. If it's you."

Don glanced at the figure ahead of him, taking in the multiple scars all over Mike's shell sadly. "If you say so… Mikey." Mike glanced back over his shoulder with a smile but there were no more time for words as they stepped out of the hall and into the bustle of the main room.

It was utter chaos. Don could only watch as people ran back and forth, packing papers and weapons alike in large, well used boxes. Don shuddered as he looked over the multitude of guns before he took note of maybe twenty well-made home bombs shoved in a box right next to another full of rather flammable bedding material. "Mikey, er-Mike, is that-" Don began, gesturing at the boxes that had caught his attention.

"Safe?" Mike chuckled as he glanced at the corner. "Not really, but we're professionals at this by now."

Don blinked at him but nodded as he went back to people watching. "Um. They're really young…"

"No younger than we were the first time we took on Shred-head," Mike countered.

"But from what I've seen, this is a full scale war going on," Don protested. "Why-?"

Mike let out a long sigh. "Not many people survived the labor camps in that first decade and the population of New York had nearly been severed over two-thirds in those years. Only the stubborn and the strong survived but many of them don't know any better now."

Don stared at his brother. "Labor camps?" he whispered, almost as if he were afraid to say it any louder.

Mike nodded. "Everyone is now forced to work eighteen hour days in Shredder's labor camps, with no reprieve. The Shredder is adamant about taking his oppressive reign to a universal level." Mike turned to glance at him again. "And that's just to start with."

Don found himself caught in the gaze of those endless blue eyes, darker than the last time he saw them and defiantly a lot harder. The sparkle that they had once held left long ago. It was defiantly not the Mikey that he remembered standing before him. There was a pain inside him that had run deep and festered. He wondered if the old Mikey would ever be able to return.

"Hey Mike!"

Both turtles turned at the call and Don stared at the woman that made her way over and wrapped his brother in a quick hug. "Angel girl!" Mike said, more joyful than he had been just seconds before. "Everything go alright?"

The woman nodded, her ponytail bouncing with the movement. "They didn't even know what hit 'em! We were in and out of there like ghosts."

"As long as you don't get too cocky," Mike admonished her sternly.

The woman snickered. "Don't worry," she drawled. "I know my limits _and_ that of my team."

Mike nodded and Don quickly took a step back as both suddenly turned their gazes to him. "Don," Mike smiled. "Here's someone you should know."

Donatello startled. "I do?" he asked turning back to the woman who was grinning widely. She was pretty tall; dark brown hair pulled in a high ponytail and dressed conservatively in black leggings and a matching sweatshirt, the standard ware for a hit a run operation. The woman cocked an eyebrow and Donatello shook himself out of his observation mode. "I don't think…" he began, shaking his head.

The woman let out a dramatic sigh. "Ah, how easy they forget," she chuckled.

Don was at a complete loss and he turned to look at Mike for any sort of clue. "It's Angel," Mike told him with a laugh.

The other turtle boggled as he whirled around to stare at the woman, the duffel bag hanging from slacken fingers. "_Angel_?" he gasped, looking the woman over again in astonishment.

She just laughed. "It's the hair, isn't it?" she said. "Last time you saw me, it was purple."

"The last time I saw you, you were _fourteen_!"

Angel chuckled. "Filled out nice, didn't I?"

Don just continued to boggle as Mike turned to Angel. "Ease up, will ya? I think he's going into shock again."

Angel smirked before her face turned serious and she turned to Don again. "Jordan said he looked too young to be your brother but I could never forget you guys. He looks exactly as he did all those years ago."

"That's what everyone's telling me," Don sighed as he looked back down at the duffel bag in a rare show of unease. He was unused to so many scrutinizing stares.

Mike frowned as he set the lantern down so he could place his only hand on Don's shoulder. "I know this is hard Donnie, but you gotta remember it's hard for us too."

Don nodded sadly. "I'm sure."

There was the sound of a throat clearing and the two turtles turned back to Angel who was already turning away. "Well, I'll just leave you two to get reacquainted, shall I?"

"See ya Angel," Mike called out after her. "Unfortunately our reunion will have to wait a while," he said to Don. "They're loading up the trucks and that means we've got to go."

Don nodded as Mike picked up the lantern again and started heading for one of the doors outside. "Mike… I know there'll be plenty of time for Q and A later but I just have to ask, are you the one running this place?"

Donatello was not expecting Mike to burst out laughing as he balanced the lantern in the crook of his arm so he could turn it off. "Man Don, I haven't had that good a laugh in a long time," he said as he tossed the item into the back of a pick up truck. One of the newer models Don had remembered seeing on television just last week, though this one had clearly seen better days.

"Well if you're not running it, who is? Angel?" Don persisted as Mike took the duffel back and tossed it after the lantern.

"Donnie, Donnie, Donnie," a voice sighed behind him. "Always with the questions."

Don whirled around as Mike just laughed behind him again and climbed into the truck. "April?" Don gasped in disbelief as he was instantly wrapped into a hug.

"Oh Donnie!" the much older April nearly sobbed as she nearly squeezed the air out of him. "We've missed you."

"Yeah, we all did," Mike said behind them. "Unfortunately we're going to have to postpone this heartfelt moment. Everyone's leaving without us."

April chuckled as she tugged Donnie to the other side of the truck. "Come on," she smiled and climbed into the cab.

Donnie stared at the truck a moment before he sighed and climbed in after April. Dream or no, he was apparently going along for the ride. He only hoped that he could handle any more surprises that he would most defiantly encounter on the trip.

-To Be Continued


	3. Perfectly Tarnished: Road Trip Reunion

Never The Same Again Part One: Perfectly Tarnished

_By Black Dragon Queen_

Author's Note: Hopefully I'll get back to this by Fall! No promises though!

* * *

**Chapter Three: Road Trip Reunion**

The roads were crap. Utterly and completely horrible as they bounced, jerk and practically hobbled down the road. The shocks of the truck were obviously completely gone as everyone nearly had to clamp their jaws shut or risk losing teeth with the force of the harsh bouncing from falling into yet another of the many, many, _many_ large potholes.

Don's tail, tucked firmly under the rim of his shell was still not saved as Mikey, or rather Mike, cursed again and tried to swerve around one large pothole only to fall into another smaller one. Don bit down a small curse of his own as the force of the truck falling raised him up slightly only to fall back down at an odd angle and right on the poor tip of his tail that had slipped out momentarily.

With a small wince, he moved it back under his shell and tried to firmly plant himself in the seat, hooking his knees under the seat to try and keep himself from bouncing as much but it seemed everything was against him as the truck bounced once again. Don grabbed the door handle but even so, the bouncing continued as the roads were utter crap.

"Damn it," Mikey hissed again as he glanced at April after he was unable to avoided yet another hole. "Check the back will ya?"

April nodded and twisted around as much as she could squished between two turtles with rather large shells as she glanced back at the flat bed and the items stored within. "So far nothing's gone."

"Well that's some good news," Mike growled as he eased up off the gas and around yet another pothole, trying his best to follow the small beat up sedan before him. "At least this is one of the better roads," the turtle muttered.

"You mean they're all like this?" Don gasped as he looked over April's head at his brother.

Mikey spared a moment to look away from the road and glanced at the other turtle in the truck. "No city workers to fix 'em," he explained. "Since the main roads are for Shredder's personal police we have to stay to the back ones even if they are crap." Mikey broke off in his explanation as he swerved around another pothole.

Don blinked in surprised before he sat back down in his seat again. "Oh," he said softly.

Mike risked another glance before he was forced to watch the road once more or risk falling into yet another pothole as April reached over and patted Don's hand reassuringly. "I know this is a lot to take in," she murmured. "After being gone so long."

"But I wasn't gone April," Donnie muttered. "That's the frustrating part. I mean I just talked with you and Casey yesterday when we watched that horrible sci-fi movie Mikey picked out."

"Hey!" Mike called out from the driver's seat with a small chuckle. "I may have done a lot of mistakes when I was younger but I never had bad taste in movies."

Don blinked. "Err…"

April just rolled her eyes and gave Don's hand another small pat. "Just start from the beginning Don."

Don gave April a wan smile before his expression turned serious as he started thinking over everything that had occurred in the past eight hours. It was still so surreal. It was almost like he wasn't there but as the truck suddenly jerked once more around a pothole and Don was bounced so hard his head momentarily hit the roof of the truck, he knew that it was most defiantly not a dream.

Donatello's eyes widened as he moaned and dropped his head. "This is really happening, isn't it?"

April gained a worried look and the reassuring pats on the hand became a rather unending staccato of nervous smacks as Mikey glanced away from the road ahead of him to look over at Donnie once again, nearly rear ending the small sedan as it slowed down to pass another abandoned car. "Son of a-" Mikey snarled as he practically stomped on the breaks.

"Language," April instantly chastised and Mike managed to pull a small sheepish look.

"Sorry," he muttered as he pulled forward once again.

April seemed to be appeased as she turned back to Don. "It's okay Donnie, just take your time. I know it's a lot to take in."

Don sighed as he leaned back against the seat as they reached a somewhat smooth road and it took him a moment to realize they were on the sidewalk. Not that he supposed it mattered since there was no one about. "It's like I said," he started slowly. "Yesterday we had our movie night. Casey and Raph got in a fight with Mikey over the popcorn bowl, Leo spent nearly the entire time trying to break them up so we could watch the movie in peace and Splinter fell asleep halfway through." He shrugged. "It was like every other movie night."

April and Mike shared a glance before April turned to Don again. "And what happened next? Was that when you found yourself here?"

Don shook his head as he held onto the door handle again. "No, we said our goodnights and went to bed and that's the last I remember. I know that I had to have gotten up and started the day like normal but for some reason I just can't remember."

April sighed and gave Don's arm a small squeeze in lieu of a hug in the small confined space. "It's okay Don. It's going to be okay."

Don didn't believe her and knew that she didn't even believe it herself but he just smiled as he gave his friend a tentative smile. "Thanks," he muttered, "but now I'm really curious about all this." Don motioned towards all the abandoned buildings and rusted out and abandoned cars as they passed.

There was a small groan from Mike and a small smirk appeared on his face. "Here it comes. Donnie's version of twenty questions, the advance edition."

Don frowned but could help as the questions that had been swirling around in his mind refused to be suppressed any longer. "What's going on in the world?" was the first question that popped out of his mouth. "How in the world did the Shredder win? Why isn't there anyone else fighting him? What happened to the government? What about this rebellion? Why is it only April in charge? And what are the factories all producing? We passed seventeen so far! And what about the Foot? That group we first met up with were nothing like them but they weren't the Purple Dragons? Where are they? What about-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Mikey laughed loudly. "One question at a time Brainiac! We can't keep up with your quick mind."

Don blinked in surprise as his questions were suddenly interrupted. "Oh… right. Sorry." He ducked his head a bit embarrassed at his behavior.

April stifled a small chuckle herself before she suddenly turned serious. The atmosphere in the truck suddenly dropped dramatically as a tense silence fell over the two older passengers as they sent small glances at one another, seemingly having a whole conversation. Don looked from one to the other confused but something in his gut said to just leave them for now and wait for them to start on their own.

It was Mikey who finally broke the silence. "It all started after you disappeared," he began. Don frowned but said nothing as he hung on to every word that now poured from Mikey's mouth. "We searched for you everywhere Don. God it must have been nearly two years that we spent just looking for you." Don's eyes widened at that announcement and he reached over April's lap and placed a hand over Mikey's arm.

Blue eyes glanced over at him and they locked eyes for a moment before Mikey was forced to look away and back at the road. "Of course, while we were looking for you, the Shredder wasn't idle," Mike continued gruffly. "He worked furiously in those two years using the left over Triceraton technology and soon, he had the entire city under his control."

"It was an attack no one saw coming," April nodded sadly. "He had used the pretense of 'rebuilding the city' to get with the mayor and soon the governor of the state and before anyone knew what was happening, Foot ninja's, Purple Dragons, hell, every scum bag in the entire city just attacked everyone with the advance weapons that the Shredder had created from the Triceraton's weapons."

"But weren't you still fighting him?" Don couldn't help but question. "Don't tell me that you guys put looking for me before the good of the city and trying to defeat Shredder."

Mike was quiet for a long moment, his lips pursed before he finally shook his head. "When you disappeared Donnie…" he began slowly, a faraway look in his eyes. "When you were gone, everything just fell apart somehow."

April looked saddened but Don was now more puzzled than ever at Mikey's words. "Fell apart?" he asked softly.

Mike nodded. "We were a team Don; a unit of four fighting as a whole. We relied on each other to complete that unit." He glanced back over at the purple clad turtle. "It wasn't until you were gone that we realized just how much we needed all of us to keep that unit whole. We couldn't fight without you."

Don's eyes widened in surprise. "That can't be all of it," he said, shaking his head in disbelief. "I mean… I'm just me. The three of you should have still be enough opposition to Shredders operations."

"You don't get it do you?" Mikey suddenly roared as he banged his fist against the steering wheel. "Without you we were completely overwhelmed. None of us knew how to even fight against the weapons they had much less defeat them! Without you… it just didn't work."

Donatello quickly fell silent after Michelangelo's outburst and the cab fell into a hushed silence one more. It was overwhelming. The notion that his brothers were unable to fight without him was completely incomprehensible. Don wasn't even that good of a fighter anyway. He spent most of his time working the science end of things anyway while his brothers ran interference while he… … '_oh_…'

Don's eyes widened as a sudden realization struck him. He always was the one working against whatever new electronic device that they came across. Mikey and Raph and Leo never cared about that stuff so they always took on the task of kicking some major shell while Don always toiled away. Don had always felt bad that he left his brothers to do all the hard work but apparently that wasn't the case. If what Mikey and April was saying was true, then it was their lack of technical knowledge that was their downfall.

Why didn't Don ever think of that? '_I should have been able to think of that_!' Don instantly berated himself. '_That their lack of technical knowledge could hamper them_, _I should have been able to realize that it could become a possible flaw in our group. Hell, Leo can barely work the microwave_!' Don scowled, glaring out the front window as he thought. '_Knowing how to fight the Shredder on a technical level is just as important as fighting him in hand-to-hand combat_! _The Shredder knows this; why he's such a dangerous adversary._'

"It was complete chaos," Mike sighed, drawing Don out of his thoughts and back to the conversation at hand. "We never even knew what hit us when the lair was attacked."

Don had to quickly swallow the lump that seemed to appear in his throat out of thin air. "The-the lair?"

Mike nodded. "It was the middle of the night. We-we had no warning."

Don's eyes just widened. "What about my security system? I have those powered so they'll work for years!"

Mike cringed. "We… kind of accidentally… shut 'em down."

Don just stared. "You shut them down?"

"It was an accident!" Mikey quickly defended. "We were trying to re-wire the lair and… well, some wires got crossed and we never really managed to get the security system back up and running again."

Don just stared at his brother in shock before he turned to look back at April who nodded in agreement. "The city worked on some pipelines that cut into your power supply," she explained. "When the guys tried to fix it," she shrugged helplessly.

Don just groaned, his first instinct was to lay into Mikey about his lack of responsibility but it was a moot point now. What was done was done and it was only a small part in the bigger picture apparently. "And then?" he asked hesitantly.

April picked up the story. "Shredder completely took over the city. Those who survived were forced into his labor camps, forced to build his weaponry for his invasion of the Utrom home world. They guys did a lot of hit and run operations until we came upon Angel and her small team. After that we managed to find even more groups against the Shredder and formed the Resistance."

"Which you lead," Donatello finished and April nodded.

"Mikey helps train them when they first join but it's pretty much just us," April said with a small smile at Mikey.

Don chuckled at this before a thought suddenly occurred to him and he nearly kicked himself that he hadn't thought of it earlier. "Just Mikey?" he asked, startling the other two occupants of the car. "What about Leo and Raph? And where's Master Splinter? Are they hold up somewhere too?" April and Mike shared a sudden worried glanced and Donatello instantly became alarmed. "Guys, what's going on? Where are they? They weren't?" Don was instantly sitting sideways on the small seat, facing the other two in the cab. "You can't tell me that they were-?"

Mike suddenly cursed and the truck jerked as he yanked on the wheel and stopped the vehicle. Don instantly grasped the dash to try and keep his balance at Mikey's sudden move. The truck sat there idle as Michelangelo leaned forward and placed his head against the steering wheel silently while April looked at a loss between comforting an upset Mikey and reassuring the distraught Donatello. "No, Don. Leo and Raph are alive. They're not dead," April said quickly as she placed a hand on Mike's shoulder.

"They're not…" Donatello sagged back into his seat in shocked relief, the hammering of his heart suddenly slowing a bit back to a somewhat normal rhythm. He looked over at Mikey and was surprised to see a dark, grim look on his features. "I don't understand," he began when there was a sudden static screech in the small cab and a voice came over the line.

"Boss? Boss are you okay?"

April quickly fumbled by her belt and pulled out a small hand radio that was apparently held together only by the duct tape that was wrapped around the base. "We're okay George," April quickly spoke. "Just go on ahead. We'll meet you at the new base."

There was a pause from the radio before it suddenly clicked back on. "Understood. Be careful boss."

April nodded even though the other person couldn't see her. "Will do. April out."

The few cars that had been behind them slowly began to pass them and soon they were alone on the small, abandoned road. Mike finally reached forward and turned the key and the truck became silent. The three sat there, in silence for a long while, Don to afraid to ask the questions that were whirling in his head as he took in the grim looks of the two before him. Mike suddenly cursed in the silence and shoved his door open, jumping out of the truck and out into the night.

April cringed as the door was slammed shut and looked down at her hands in her lap. Don turned to look at her, completely puzzled but she shook her head. "I shouldn't be the one to tell you," she said with a small nod towards the other turtle standing under a darkened street post.

Don just looked at her saddened face before he nodded and turned towards his own door. He had to steady himself a moment before he finally opened it and managed to step down out of the vehicle. Mike didn't look at him as he approached and Don had a dark sinking feeling in him. "Mikey? What happened? Where are the others?" Don finally asked quietly.

He jumped as Mike's fist reached out and slammed against the pole, the lamp above them shaking a bit under the force but Mike still refused to say anything. Don frowned as he stepped forward and reached out, taking Mike's bruised fist in between his own hands gently running a finger over the bleeding knuckles. "Mikey…" he said quietly. "Please tell me."

Mike turned slightly and instantly met sad, yet unwavering eyes. Eyes that showed someone who was determined to get the truth. Eyes that Michelangelo had missed for over thirty years. The two siblings stared at each other for a long moment before Mikey sighed. Mikey finally spoke, slow and hesitant in a shaky voice began to tell Don why he was so upset.

"That night that the Foot destroyed the lair… we were completely caught off guard. We were instantly overwhelmed and we nearly didn't make it. The main wall collapsed and we were backed into a corner, literally. We knew that we had to get out of there and we were trying to make it out of the damaged south wall and into the main sewer but it was almost impossible." Mikey closed his eyes and swallowed deeply before he looked back at Don, who was listening to him intently, waiting for him continue.

Mikey frowned before he finally turned to face Don completely. "Master Splinter-" he took a deep breath, "_father_- took them all on so we could get away. Raph, Raph absolutely refused to go. Leo and I practically had to drag him out of there but what else could we do? His leg was broken as was one of his arms, Leo had broken ribs, my collar bone…" He looked down at the hands that still held his. They were shaking violently by now but Don still refused to say anything, waiting for Mike to finish. Taking a deep breath, he looked up and met those determined eyes that were already brimming with tears. Mikey shook his head and realized he didn't have to say anything more as the tears finally fell to stain the small purple fabric across his eyes and Don's knees seemed to buckle.

Mike reached out and hooked his arm under Don's to keep him from falling as Don's head fell forward to rest against Mike's shoulder as the tears fell freely. Mike just clung to him as he gently allowed them both to sink down to the ground under the darkened lamp as Donatello wailed out his sorrow. Tears were something that Mike had learned long ago solved nothing but with his long lost brother, crying his heart out before him for the loss of their father and he began to feel the familiar sting in his own eyes. Mike hugged him tight as his wailings dimmed to a heart wrenching, hiccupping sobs.

He looked over Don's head to see April still seated in the cab of the truck, her own tears falling freely from her own eyes as she watched the two turtles. Mike took a deep breath before he finally gave Don a finally squeeze and leaned back, allowing Don some time to compose himself slightly. Don let out a small sigh as he whipped his eyes and looked back up at his brother. "I'm okay," he reassured at Mike's worried look.

Mike looked as if he were about to say something when he thought better of it and sighed. "I'll take you to where we buried him later, so you can say good bye but we have to wait until later tonight." he said as he helped Don to his feet. "Dawn's almost here."

Don nodded as he took ends of his mask and wiped his face. "I'd appreciate that," he said quietly. Mike nodded again as they headed for the truck once again. Don glanced back over at April and managed a small smile. The woman gave a small one back as she scooted over and waited for the boy's to climb in, this time Don finding himself in the middle. He waited for Mike to climb back into the driver's seat but spoke before he could turn the truck back on. "What about Leo and Raph?" he asked quietly. "They're not with you and the resistance, are they?"

Mike sighed as he allowed his hand to drop away from the key. "Leo and Raph? They're not with anyone these days."

"What happened?" he asked as Mike finally completed the movement of turning the truck back on.

"After Master Splinter passed on, we still looked for you but we just… I don't know, couldn't keep it together," Mike shrugged as he eased out into the road. "The fights between them just got worse and worse and the fights against the Shredder's forces became harder and more deadly and…" He sighed. "Raph wanted to do an all out assault against the Shredder in revenge for Splinter on the anniversary of his death and for once, Leo actually agreed with the hot head."

Don cringed. That did not sound well at all. "What happened?" he asked and April suddenly began crying softly beside him again. Don glanced at her surprised before he turned back to Mike, dreading what he had to say.

Mike's expression turned grim. "We lost Casey," he said softly and Don jerked in surprise before he turned to April, understanding finally lighting his eyes.

"Oh God. April, I'm so sorry," he whispered as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

April just nodded as she leaned her head against his shoulder. "It was a long time ago."

Don gave her a small reassuring squeeze even as new tears began falling down his cheeks. "God… this is just so unreal," he sighed as he looked around at the abandoned buildings and broken streets.

"But reality," Mike growled. "And reality is hell."

Don turned back to look at him in surprise at the darkness in his tone. "Mikey…"

"Well it is," Mike snapped and Don reared back at the bite in the other turtle's tone and Mike instantly deflated, his anger gone in an instant. "Sorry," he muttered. "Anyway, after that failed attempt at fighting Shredder head on Leo and Raph finally couldn't take each other any more or me," he added bitterly. "They left to fight the Shredder on their own."

"What?" Don gasped. "You mean you haven't seen them?"

"They help the resistance every once in a while but never together," Mike hastened to reassure Don. "And every time I see them I tried to convince them that we have to work together like we once did but I'm afraid once Splinter died, they just couldn't move past it and that last fight… God that last fight." Mike shook his head. "They nearly killed each other that night. God it was so awful."

"Trying to get them to work together after that was nearly impossible," April continued. "Hell, just trying to get them in the same room is hard enough as it is."

"So Leo and Raph are gone?" Don asked.

"They're still in New York," Mike answered. "They both gave April a way to contact them and they'll speak to me once in a while but every time I bring up us as a family or even so much as mention your name…" Mike sighed again as he trailed off.

"Are they mad at me?"

Mike and April turned surprised at the turtle between them. Don didn't even look at them, looking at his lap instead as he waited with held breath for the answer.

"Damn it Donnie, no one is mad at you," Mike growled.

"You were," Don couldn't help but snap back childishly and he was instantly remorseful at his angered jibe. Mike cringed at the remaindered and Don went to apologize when he thought better of it. Mike did blame him when they had first been reunited at the warehouse and he was still a little bit angered at that.

Mike just sighed. "I'm sorry Donnie," he said quietly. "I was just… just frustrated."

Don nodded as he shifted slightly over towards Mike till he was leaning on the other turtle. "I know," he murmured. "I'm sorry too."

April wrapped her arm around Don's arm again and leaned on him as well as they continued on in silence. Don was quiet as he thought over everything that he had been told. His family torn apart by the Shredder and everything that he had ever known was gone forever. His breath hitched as he fought tears once again, his emotions running high. He found himself wrapping an arm around both April and Mikey and just hunkered down in the seat as they continued down the road.

Mike smiled but soon shrugged off Don's shoulder as he sat back up straighter and cracked his neck. "Look alive you guys. We're almost there," he said.

Don still gave Mike a small hug before he slid back a bit further away from Mike as April sat back up and wiped her face. Don settled himself as he looked around now to try and figure out where they were. It seemed that they were in the old warehouse district and Mike turned into one of the side roads towards the far end of the compound.

April leaned forward and pointed at a small cluster of vehicles. "There they are. They're still unloading."

"Damn it," Mike growled. "The sun's rising. They should be under cover by now."

"Mike, it takes time to unload," April sighed.

"Don't care," Mike snarled. "Get them under cover and those vehicles hidden. We can finish unloading tonight."

April looked like she wanted to argue before she finally just nodded. "You're right… as usual," she huffed.

Mike just chuckled as he pulled up beside another truck and April quickly climbed out, barking orders that sent nearly everyone scrambling to obey and engines roared to life as the vehicles were moved and people scrambled to move everything into the large building.

Don moved to get out of the truck when he was suddenly grabbed and pulled back further into the truck. He turned surprised to look back at Mike who was frowning at him. "Donnie…" Mike began. "You have to remember that a lot's changed around here."

Don frowned as he closed the door that April had left open and turned back to give Mike his full attention. "What is it?" he asked, instantly knowing that there was something that Mike wasn't telling him.

Mike just sighed. "A lot has changed and everyone here knows the story about your disappearance and knowing Jordan as I do, everyone already knows that you're back and still only sixteen."

"Mike…" Don said slowly. "Just tell me."

Mike sighed and nodded. "During one of our raids, we came across a research lab and liberated a few of the subjects there. One of them… or rather two of them you'll know."

Don just stared at him. "Mikey, please just tell it to me straight."

Mike opened his mouth to answer when the door behind Don suddenly swung open and a rather eerily familiar voice rang out. "Well this is a shocker. Usually you are so careful Michelangelo, but to actually bring this creature here with your precious resistance is a rather large oversight on your part. Do you even know where he's been for the past thirty years? The possibility that he's a trap by the Shredder is quite great."

Donatello gasped as whirled around, instantly rearing back as far away from the figure that shadowed the doorway. Mike grunted as he bumped into him but Don's focus was solely on the figure before him. He could feel Mike grabbing his arm, to keep him from attacking or running away but he didn't have to worry about anything like that. Don was to stunned at the sight before him to even really think straight.

"Ah Donatello," Stockman continued from his glass jar that was attached securely to Hun's shoulder. "Looking younger than ever. And how do we look? Another of the Shredders apt punishments." Don just gapped at the two as the floating eyeball in the jar turned to the leader of the Purple Dragons. "Well? Say hello Hun."

Hun sneered at the floating brain attached to his shoulder before he looked back at the two turtles still in the truck. "Greetings Donatello."

"What the-?" was all Don managed to get out.

"It's a long story," Mike sighed behind him before he turned a sharp look at the two. "And you should be getting under cover," he snapped.

There was a huff from Stockman. "Temperamental as always I see. Is that a family trait or a mutant turtle trait?"

Mike's frown deepened before he turned to the full-blooded human. "Hun," he said darkly, the warning clear in his tone.

Hun just nodded and Don was surprised to see him reaching down. He soon saw why as the wheelchair came into sight. "But I wasn't finished yet!" Stockman shouted as Hun rolled away and up into the warehouse."

"Was that-?" Don began, shock still rendering him speechless.

"Uh huh," Mike nodded as he reached back and opened his own door.

"And were they-?" Don began again as he followed his brother out the drivers side door.

"Uh huh," Mike nodded again, a small smirk beginning to appear as he went to the back of the truck and quickly handed Don his Bo Staff.

Don just mulled over this for a moment before he glanced back at Mike who was pulling out a few bags from the flat bed and a small smile lit his own face. "They must drive each other nuts," he finally stated. Mike threw back his head and laughed uproariously, momentarily startling the rebels around them as the two turtles just leaned against the truck and laughed hysterically together till Angel came to fetch them.

To be Continued

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Author's Note: Well, there you have it. My first attempt to write the TMNT gang. Please let me know what you think!


	4. Perfectly Tarnished: The Speculations

**Never The Same Again  
**

_By The Black Dragon Queen_

**Author's Note**: Did anyone see the small picture of the SAINW turtles during Turtles Forever when The Shredder was going through the different worlds? I did and so here's chapter four. My Transformer story is still uncompleted so if I DO start into this fic once more the updates will be sporadic and far between. I am so sorry! ;_; -Sigh- Un-edited. Sorry for any and all mistakes!

* * *

**Part 1- Perfectly Tarnished**

Chapter Four: The Speculations

The warehouse was very much a warehouse. A giant empty building filled with nothing but cleared space aside from a small side walled off to create an office and the catwalks all up above their heads. The large empty brackets from where the large machinery had once stood the only testament to there once being life in the building. It was much larger then the old one where the vehicles Don had almost built from scratch were rusting. It was almost depressing in a way.

Don sighed as he looked around watching as everyone scrambled to get everything secure before the sun rose and Shredder's helicopter patrols were in the air once again. It was almost complete chaos. Everyone was running back and forth, the sound of trucks being backed into the next warehouse a steady rumble. It was pandemonium everywhere.

With a frown, Don looked down at the box of assorted stuff that had been shoved into his arms by Angel as Mike went to stow the truck. Among the items there was even an extra gun clip next to a spare can of grease. Cringing just a bit, Don looked around for a place to get rid of the thing.

"You look lost," a voice chuckled behind him and Don turned around to find a young girl no older than himself or how old he saw himself.

"Err… yeah," he said sheepishly as he held out the box. "I wasn't sure where this would go."

"I'll take it," she smiled as she easily grabbed the edge and set it under her arm.

Don blinked. "Um, thanks."

"No problem," the girl grinned. She did not move away from him. Don fought the urge to fidget.

"Lydia, don't you have some other things to be attending to?" A voice drawled and the girl gave Angel a quick frown before she scuttled off.

"Thanks," Don sighed in relief.

"Sorry about that," Angel snickered as she guided Donatello over to the far side of the building. "You can understand that you're a bit of a curiosity."

"Well, Mikey said that everyone was use to him and Leo and Raph when they come over but I'm still not use to having so many eyes on me."

"True," Angel smiled. "Last time we saw you it was when you and the others were still widely unknown by the general public."

"Everyone knows?" Don gasped as he turned to look at Angel in stupefied shock. "Not just the group here but _everyone_?"

"Which is not necessarily a good thing," a deep voice spoke up from the shadows. Don whirled around and glanced down as Hun rolled up to him.

Stockman's floating eyeball swiveled to look at his reluctant host. "Now, now," he said in a chastising tone. "Let us not scare the poor thing." The eye swiveled to look at the turtle and Don instantly took a small step back and bumped into Angel who was frowning at the brain in the jar. Stockman chuckled. "He's been through enough already I think."

Don frowned as he looked back at Hun. "I don't understand."

"Shredder has promised Hun's former position to anyone who finds and turns in one of us," Mike growled as he came up to the group, glaring at both Hun and Stockman. "As you can imagine, it is a tempting proposition for those in the work chains. Not to mention the street forces and the actual foot ninja's themselves."

Hun made a quick scoff of disgust as he wheeled back and spun his chair around, heading back to where April was directing everyone. Don watched them go apprehensively before he turned to Mike who was still watching the two former members of Shredder's inner workings. "They'll turn us in without a second's thought, won't they?" he asked quietly.

"Can you blame them?" Mike sighed.

Don's eyes went wide. "But you're _fighting_ the Shredder! Doesn't that count for something?"

"When weighed against real food and an actual bed, it's surprisingly not that much," Mike shook his head. "Anyway, here."

Don's arm was suddenly filled once again as Mike lifted the pack that Don hadn't even noticed he had and pressed it into his arm. "A tent?" Don asked baffled as recognition finally set in. He glanced around amazed to see that others were setting up tents or sleeping bags around the floor of the warehouse. He looked back at Mike in surprise.

Mike quirked an eye ridge and snickered. "Quick on the uptake today, aren't' we?"

Don gave him an exasperated look. "It's been a long day," he chuckled. "Give me some credit."

The other turtle just snickered before he caught Don's elbow. "This way genius."

Don gave Mike a sideways glance as he was steered towards the far corner. It was the only one without a door and far enough away from the windows that had a nice full view of the entire warehouse. "Strategic," he murmured.

"Indeed," Mike snickered. "Do you need help with the tent?" Don gave him another disbelieving look and Mike actually ducked his head in embarrassment. "Right. Sorry."

Don shook his head. He could actually understand Mikey's awkwardness if it had truly been over thirty years as the evidence clearly showed despite Don's continued disbelief. "Actually, if you wouldn't mind," he said slowly. "These things are always twice as hard without the instructions."

The smallest twitch of a smile crept over Mike's face as he snagged the zipper and pulled. "Well, well, well. Will wonders never cease?"

It took them about twenty minutes to set up the single pup tent and it was more because of the awkwardness between the two turtles than the actual complication of setting up the tent. With a small sigh, Don gave Mike a thumb's up. "Huh," he laughed as he got up. "Guess I didn't really need your help after all."

Mike chuckled as he gave Don's shoulder a rather forceful pat. "Yeah, you're a genius."

Don just grinned before he glanced around. "So where's yours?" he asked a bit puzzled. "I could give you some tips."

Mike just grinned and slowly leaned forward. "You're looking at it," he chuckled as he tilted his head towards the now perfectly set up tent.

Don's eyes just went wide in surprise before he glanced down at the completed structure. The tent was only large enough for one of their large bulk and Mikey, rather Mike, was so much larger in his adult form. "But-"

"Don't worry about it," Mike chuckled, throwing his arm around Don's shoulders, refusing to allow himself to think about just how narrow and small those shoulders felt. "I have first shift any how." Don still looked hesitant however and Mike sighed. "Look, I'll wake ya when my shift ends. Is that better?" The shoulders relaxing under his arm told Mike that it was.

"I'm so sorr-"

"Don't even finish that sentence," Mike growled, pulling Don closer to his side.

Don nodded. "Thanks," he said instead.

"That's better," Mike nodded sharply as he pulled away. Don instantly felt the loss of the comfort Mike's embrace gave him and was once more floating alone in the sea of his confusion. "Now get some rest," Mike told him.

"Oh but I couldn't."

"Nonsense," Mike interrupted him once again. "You got maybe two hours sleep before and that had only been when you past out and I _know_ that the day's surprises are going to catch up to you and hit you hard." Don couldn't argue. "Sleep brainiac."

Don could only smile at the nickname. It was something familiar when even Mikey himself wasn't as much. Don nodded as he turned towards the tent. "Night."

Mike grinned before he turned, his one lone arm rose in a half wave. "Morning bro," he said and Don smiled. Just the simplest of words shortened in the most intimate of ways. Don knew that he could rest because at least one of his brothers was there watching out for him. It was a good feeling.

* * *

Mike looked up surprise as a pair of feet suddenly blocked his view of the floor and he looked up surprised to find April not looking at him but rather behind him. "Isn't that your tent?"

Mike simply lifted one shoulder. "Does it matter?"

April finally looked away and glanced at her long time friend. "Considering that you've never once used it, possibly." Mike sent her a quick glare but April simply smiled. "But not surprising."

The turtle shook his head. "So what's up?" he asked, changing the subject as they walked away from the small tent in the corner. Mike couldn't help but take in the sight of the other tents and makeshift beddings were kept well away from where he had left Donnie.

Angel gave him a quick smile as they past and Mike gave her a grateful nod. He didn't care that these were his allies; he didn't want anyone near Don at the moment. Not so much because the still didn't even know if he really was the long lost Donatello but rather the thought of anything happening to him now after so long frightened Michelangelo to the core.

April gave him an understanding smile when he finally turned his attention back to her before her expression turned serious. "Jordan called a meeting."

Mike couldn't contain a snort of disgust. "Why do you let that guy remain?" he growled as he glanced over at the office space where he could see some of the other "high commanders" standing around. "He's unstable."

"Some can say the same about you," April shrugged. Mike gave another growl and she shot him a quick glance. "He wants the Shredder gone same as everyone else," she persisted. "He can be trusted."

"For now," Mike snarled.

April sighed. "Mikey, say the word and you know I'll take your instincts over anyone else's gut feelings."

Mike actually considered it, not the first time and it would probably not be the last but for the moment he shook his head. "No. We still need him." He paused. "Damn it."

April snickered as they finally reached the door. "Shall we then?"

Mike nodded and he looked back over his shoulder to see Angel trotting over towards them. "I'm here!" she smiled.

"Let's get this show on the road," Mike sighed as he followed the two women into the room.

Jordan instantly looked up and his gaze locked on the large ninja turtle and stayed there. Mike just frowned at him as he took his place behind April where she sat in the folding chair that had been set up at the front of the room. Angel took her own place on April's other side sitting down in the offered chair as opposed to Mike who remained standing.

Hun and Stockman were there as well along side Victor, a once military man now pushing near seventy who helped Mike train the new recruits every now and again as well as Alan, another older gentleman who was just hard as nails and simply refused to lay down and die. The fact that these two men were willing to follow April and Angel was just amazing. Mike felt that it had more to do with not only the history the two woman had in regards to Shredder but his own presence as well. Perhaps even Leo and Raph when they bothered to show up and help.

"All right," Victor said in his deep gruff voice as he stepped forward, Alan remaining beside the door. "Who the fuck is that?"

Mike frowned as Victor jabbed his finger towards the main area of the warehouse, pointing in the direction of the corner Mike had left Don in. "The smog getting to ya?" Mike drawled as he leaned back against the wall, trying not to let how much anger he was feeling show.

Victor just gave Mike a disapproving glare. "Don't push me kid," he huffed and Mike actually felt amusement at the nickname. "Who or what is that? Because it's just as Jordan said, he doesn't look like he's eighteen let alone pushing fifty like yourself."

"Hey, I'll have you know I'm in my prime here!" Mike chuckled.

"Mutant ooze and turtle DNA aside, you're just as worn down as the rest of us from fighting kid," Alan chuckled.

Mike couldn't stop himself as he stuck out his tongue, the old childish instincts rising up within him since first seeing Don and succumbing to that old feeling upon seeing his youngest elder brother that everything was finally going to be all right. "Make me," he couldn't help but taunt.

The corner of Victor's lip twitched up. "Don't tempt me young 'un." Mike, April and Angel all laughed and even Alan smirked.

"Yeah, laugh it up!" Jordan snapped pushing himself off the wall he was leaning against. "Do you have any idea where he came from? Where he's been?" he glared at the turtle. "Who _sent_ him?"

"No one sent him," April frowned at the man.

"That we know!" Jordan snapped, the anger clearly heard in his voice.

"That's enough Jordan," Alan growled and Jordan glanced back at him before he relaxed his stance.

Victor gave him a long stare before he turned back to Mike and the ladies. "Perhaps one should start at the beginning."

April and Angel looked at one another but Mike simply nodded. "I found him at the old lair," he said simply. "Still sixteen and frightened out of his mind."

"Don was scared?" April gasped, her motherly instincts instantly taking over as it usually did for all her lost lambs.

"You wouldn't think it but yeah," Mike nodded. "The facts weren't adding up and for him that's about a scary as staring down a platoon of foot elite."

There was a snort from Jordan but Victor just continued to stare at Mike. "We know very little about him," he said slowly. "Whenever the fact that you had another brother came up, when we were speaking with any one of you, you'd all just clam up."

"Save for Raphael," Alan snorted from the door. "He'd usually break something and storm away."

"True," Victor chuckled.

"Will you stop fooling around!" Jordan snapped furiously.

"And just how are we to react?" Hun finally spoke up as he glared at Jordan. Jordan instantly backed down, taking a step away from the man in the wheelchair. No one could figure out what it was about Hun that kept Jordan in line when he got belligerent; Hun's imposing characteristic or Stockman attached to his shoulder. Hun raised an eyebrow. "We must figure this out properly and decide how to proceed." The others three men stared at him in surprise as Hun looked at each one carefully. "If this is truly Donatello then we are in a much better position than we have ever been before."

"What?" Jordan practically screeched outraged. "That-that _kid_?"

"Watch yourself," Mike growled, his hand fingering the small throwing needles hidden in the seams of his belt.

Jordan didn't even give him a second look, his focus on Hun. "How in the world is that… turtle going to help?"

"Indeed," Alan drawled from the door. "I'm curious as to your optimism as well considering everything we've done to date you've found fault with."

Hun was quiet for a long moment. "You have never seen the four turtles work as a single unit before," he said slowly. "They were always a force to be reckoned with." Hun smirked at Jordan. "And all that when they were sill technically minors."

"Indeed," Stockman's voice floated out of his speaker. "They were always better as a single unit. Even that first year young Donatello was gone they still manage to put a nice dent in Shredder's plans though not a very large one." The mad scientist cackled. "Imagine what they can do now that the one whose intelligence that is only slightly on par with my own utter brilliance has return."

"If he _has_ returned," Hun spoke slowly. "We are still unsure of his origins or even if he truly is the real Donatello. We must never underestimate the Shredder's cunning."

"Which is what. I've. Been. _Saying_." Jordan gritted out between his teeth.

"What? That you think he's a clone?" Angel growled at the man. "How do you know he's _not_ a clone though? What if it really is Donatello?"

"A sixteen year old reappearing after thirty years missing?" Jordan snarled angrily. "What? You think maybe he was kidnapped by aliens?"

"Considering that Shredder himself is an alien, it's a big possibility," April snapped, giving the man her own frosty glare.

Hun shot Jordan a quick frown before he turned back to Michelangelo. "It is understanding that you are overwhelmed that your long lost brother has returned but we must look at this from every angle."

"I'm sorry to say he's right," April said quietly. "We have to be prepared that he's not really Donatello."

"Then what is he?" Michelangelo growled. "He's no robot, that's for damn sure."

"We didn't say he was," Stockman drawled. "A clone however is a possibility."

"If he's a clone of my brother he's still my brother," Mike persisted.

"If he's a clone then we have no way of knowing if he can be trusted," Victor told Mike soothingly. "It could be that even he himself is unaware of whether or not he is a clone."

"What do you mean?" Mike asked suspiciously.

"Mind control for one," Stockman spoke insensitively. "The Shredder may be able to take control of him remotely to kill the inner workings of those who would oppose him." Stockman paused for effect. "Meaning us."

"Well duh." Angel glared at the floating eyeball.

"I'm just saying," Stockman insisted.

"It is a possibility," Victor nodded.

"Don't you think I haven't thought of that," Mike growled at the humans in the room. "I know that he might be a plant! I know that he may not be the actual original Donatello."

"Oh Mikey," April said sadly.

"I have already gone over most the scenarios and I think that even if he is a plant-" Mike broke off before he had to swallow the lump in his throat and continued on. "If he is a clone made by the Shredder then it would only make sense that he's waiting for the right moment to use him. We have time."

"If he is indeed a 'plant'," Jordan growled. "He may just be some elaborate way for the Shredder to keep track of us. Of our movements."

"He cloned my long lost brother simply to track us?" Mike drawled skeptically.

"Possible," Stockman mused. "He has come up with the most outlandish schemes for the simplest of purposes."

"I doubt it," Mike huffed.

"You would know," Alan shook his head. "You've been fighting him nearly all of your life."

Mike glanced at the man still leaning against the door frame, every once in a while glancing out at the warehouse floor outside the window. "Why do you think I had him in the far corner?" he finally huffed. "I'm not stupid. I know that he could possibly be a threat! And if he is then believe me, I will be the first one to take him out before anything happened that could hurt you."

"Mikey!" April gasped. "You aren't saying-?"

"What?" Mike looked back at April and Angel's horrified looks. "No! Not that!" he instantly tried to reassure them. "I will simply leave with him before I let anything jeopardize any of you."

"We know you will," Alan spoke from the door. "You have been nothing but honest with us since we all first met you."

"And you've done nothing but fight the Shredder for not only our sake but in remembrance of your father," Victor nodded. "We trust you and your judgment."

"However you understand our concern," Alan finished.

"You have nothing to concern yourselves about," Mike told them honestly. "He is my brother and therefore he's _my_ responsibility."

"Then we will leave him to you," Alan nodded.

"The hell we will!" Jordan yelped angrily.

"Shall we put it to a vote then?" Hun drawled. Jordan instantly backed down, knowing when the numbers were against him.

"I still say this is a mistake," he snarled, sending Mike a vicious glare.

"We are not keeping you here," April told him pointedly. "You know quite well where the door is."

Mike pushed himself off the wall and fell into an aggressive stance, just waiting for Jordan to say something, anything. Jordan actually took his own firm stance and glared right back at Mike. The two just stared at one another for a long moment and Alan and Victor instantly shifted into defensive stances, glad that any meeting that was held by the rebels had but one rule; That no guns were brought into them.

That didn't mean that they weren't dangerous without them. Michelangelo had trained many of them well in hand-to-hand combat. April and Angel looked back and forth at the two in the middle of a standoff. Jordan remained silent and didn't move while Mike fingered his throwing needles once again. No one specified that one had to be completely unarmed and Mike always had at least two weapons on him no one ever knew about.

Jordan finally relaxed his stance and went back to leaning against the wall. Mike was rather disappointed.

"We should probably send out more scouts for various locations that we can move to at a moment's notice," Hun stated after the tension in the room finally dropped though there was still an uncomfortable undercurrent.

"Indeed," April nodded sadly. "We have to take every precaution."

"Do we have too?" Angel asked with a troubled frown.

"Unfortunately we have to," Mike was the one to answer her. "They're right. We can't just ignore the fact that Don isn't what we hope he is."

"I'll get some of the younger ones on it," Alan nodded.

"Not the rookies," Mike instantly criticized.

"I'm not an idiot," Alan smirked.

"So meeting adjourned?" Stockman asked cheerfully. Hun sent Mike a longsuffering look and Mike could only send him one of sympathy.

"I suppose so," Mike shrugged.

The other men nodded and filed out of the room. Jordan was the last to go and he couldn't stop himself from sending Mike a quick glare. Mike frowned. "April, remind me again…"

"We need all the help we can get," April chuckled. "Even if they are ass holes."

"Right," Mike nodded, still looking thoughtful.

"So what's next?" Angel asked.

"Next we double our look out," Mike sighed. "We have to know when Shredder makes his move if at all."

"There's going to be a lot of groaning," Angel snickered.

"Better than being caught with our asses out," Mike chuckled as they exited the office.

"You always had a way with words," April chuckled.

Mike smiled before his entire body went suddenly ramrod straight. Both women were instantly on alert as all three of the froze in their tracks. Mike ignored them, glancing around the entire warehouse once, twice and then a third time. Neither one of his scans turned up anything out of the ordinary but that darn feeling just wouldn't go away.

He barely saw Hun look up, probably alerted by Stockman regarding Mike's tense posture but Mike couldn't focus on the former leader of the Purple Dragons at that point in time. His gaze was now locked at a point across the warehouse. Locked on the small tent he had just assisted Donatello construct barely twenty minutes ago.

Mike called himself all sorts of names as he instantly sprinted towards the tent to confirm what he already knew in his heart. The tent was empty. "Damn it!" he hissed under his breath wondering why he didn't think that Don would still be awake.

Don never went to bed early and even then he took more catnaps than actually sleeping through the night. That large brain of his always working, always turning the calculations over and over and Don would get up every so often to work on something as inspiration struck him before trying to sleep once again. Mike would often get up to make breakfast to learn that he was not the first one up as he heard Don tinkering away.

Fear struck in Michelangelo's heart as two questions reared up in his own mind. First were the panic moments of wondering where Don had gone. Secondly and more importantly, knowing Don's curiosity as he did, just how much had he overheard?

-To Be Continued

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**Author's Note**: Yes, yes I am horrid. I am so sorry!


	5. Perfectly Tarnished: Fear of The Unknown

**Never The Same Again: ****Part 1- Perfectly Tarnished **

_By The Black Dragon Queen_

**Author's Note**: Okay, I may be updating this more than I originally thought! I apologize in advance for the non-editing and therefore crap spelling.

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Chapter Five: Fears of the Unknown

There are many levels of sleep. Currently Hamato Donatello wasn't experiencing any of them. He was full blown awake. Not just in a state of complete awareness but almost the same as if he had just drank his own special blend of super twice-super-strong-coffee, and the whole pot at that!

The blanket was a bit lumpy under his belly and Don had tried to fluff it multiple times but he didn't want to admit that the blanket just wasn't the problem. Groaning, he buried his head in his pillow even as his legs came up behind him and he kicked them slightly because he just couldn't stay still. He could never stay still when there were questions that still went unanswered.

His mind was still whirling in circles with everything that had happened. From the moment he had opened his eyes to the destroyed lair to running into an older version of his one and only baby brother the questions had just multiplied rapidly without an end. Don knew that until those questions were finally answered he was in for many, many more sleepless nights. The problem was, was that there was no one to give him any answers.

He had wondered in the beginning if everything had been a rather bizarre dream and if he wasn't really asleep on his desk in his room instead of the comfortable bed he owned. However one rarely sleeps in a dream and Don had completely passed out before. And everything was just too real, way too real for it to be anything but reality. He had pinched himself multiple times and had even reached out and scrapped his finger against one of the broken pieces of metal when they were leaving the former base and the blood that had welled up was far too warm.

'_Then again, the mind is a mysterious place_,' Don thought with a frown. '_And can make anything seem real._' However even as he thought this he brought his thumb down the scratch and the irritation didn't feel like a dream.

'_So let's look at this logically_,' he told himself as he tried to get what chaotic thoughts he had in order. '_I wake up in a completely ruined lair_. _A lair that had been destroyed years ago_.' The image of the ruins that was his once home popped up to the forefront of his mind but Don didn't feel such a pain of lost that anyone would have expected of him. The lair was gone that was true however they had lost their home once before and it was their childhood home at that. It was always that first lair that popped into Don's head whenever he thought of home.

The tiny, cramped quarters deep in the sewers. The absolute no privacy that any of them had, the lone closed up room belonging to Splinter himself. It was the one space none of them ever invaded. The rest of the lair however was communal space and it was almost comical how they all lived in such a small space with one another, he and his brothers always tripping over one another. Those were always the best times in Don's life. When he couldn't move without finding one of his siblings almost right next to him.

'_Though I can't argue with the fact that none of them have blown up any of my experiments _"_accidentally_"_ since receiving my own room_,' he couldn't help but chuckle to himself. '_Okay, fact two,_' he got himself back on track. '_I have absolutely no memory of what happened to the lair or how it got that way nor do I have any memory of Shredder's rise to power_. _And then there's the most baffling part of all_…' Don sighed as he looked down at his hands. '_I'm sixteen. Mike is what_?_ Forty-seven_?' He looked down at his hands again. '_Forty-seven_… _God._'

It was so strange to think of his only younger brother now so much older than him. However that brought Don to his finally fact: that he himself was only still sixteen. Sixteen with no memory of what had happened to the lair, his family, and the world in general nor any clue as to what had happened to he himself. These were the same damn questions that he had asked himself when he had first awoken in the lair and later when he had been reunited with Mikey. It was very frustrating for the turtle that was known to have all the answers. Unfortunately it seemed as if no answers would be forthcoming.

With a sigh, Don lifted his head and placed his chin on his folded arms, staring at the walls of the tent blankly. He stared unseeing for a long time before he finally determined that there was no reason to stay in Mikey's, or rather Mike's, tent while his brother was on watch. Clambering to his feet he reached the zipper and pulled it down quietly, glancing about. Many of the humans had climbed into their own tents or sleeping bags but there were still a few wandering around, speaking quietly however Don didn't recognize any of them. Not that it really made such a difference with everything so changed.

Wondering where Mike had gone, Don got his Bo and stuck it in the back of his belt before he clambered out. Looking about the warehouse, he considered the different advantage points a good lookout would have used when he spotted the light in the dilapidated office. Frowning, he headed closer when he saw the shadows of multiple people within the room, one in particular that did not match the others in any way. "Mikey," he couldn't help but murmur aloud before he sighed and rolled his eyes.

'_Stop speaking to yourself,_' he chastised himself as he headed towards the other side of the warehouse. It didn't take much to peek Donatello's curiosity but he knew, was absolutely certain that they were speaking about him. Perhaps they _did_ know about him, about why he was still so young when everything around him was so old. The urge to know almost overwhelmed him.

Glancing about, he moved to the edge of the room and quickly slipped into the shadows. It wasn't so much his ninja skills taking over that made him want to get under the cover of darkness as was the need to hide himself in general. There were still way to many unanswered questions in Don's mind and the looks that most of the people were giving him still made him very uneasy.

The door was closed but the place was so old that there was a small crack in the glass of one of the windows and Don could just make out the voices speaking. Amazingly there were still blinds in place and Don considered that very lucky. Ensuring that he was ducked far enough down that no one would see him should they peek out he moved his Bo down to his side and he did what he did best. He listened.

"-Unsure of his origins or even if he truly is the real Donatello. We must never underestimate the Shredder's cunning."

'_That's Hun's voice_,' Donatello realized. '_What is he talking about_? _But what dose he mean about the Shredder_?'

"What? That you think he's a clone?"

Don's heart practically froze in his chest at Angel's words. Was it possible? Was he in fact, just a copy of Donatello? '_No,_' Don thought frantically. '_It' can't be_! _There has to be another explanation._' However even as he thought those words the doubt began to creep into his mind.

A clone would make complete sense to any and everyone. If he was a clone then he was made with the only DNA that they had of Don's. His sixteen-year-old DNA right before he disappeared. There would have been no way for Shredder to make a clone older than the age of Don from whenever he had left the DNA.

'_But is it true_?' he thought frantically as the different clues flew through his mind as he tried to find some doubt to the theory. However the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. '_Cloning is_… _or rather was still very new but with the Utrom technology is it even possible_? _Could_… _could I be a _… _clone_?' The thought was almost too much but the more Don thought, the more he wished he could stop thinking. '_A clone_?'

It was April who was speaking that brought Don out of his troubling thoughts. "I'm sorry to say he's right. We have to be prepared that he's not really Donatello."

"Then what is he? He's no robot, that's for damn sure," Michelangelo bit back, frustration clear in his voice and Don could only shrink in on himself in guilt, his thumb going over his scratch once more. Robots certainly didn't bleed, at least as far as Don knew. However the doubt had already been planted in his heart and now his mind had gone spiraling out of control. '_If it really has been thirty years then who knows what the Shredder had been able to create_?' he wondered when Mike's voice spoke again. "If he's a clone of my brother he's still my brother."

The tightness in Don's chest loosed somewhat at those words. Mike still believed in him, even after Don had, according to Mike and everyone else, left his family and disappeared for well over three decades. That Mike still believed in him gave him some comfort, even if Mike thought that he was indeed a clone, he still believed in the true Donatello enough to know that it couldn't be possible for Don to betray them and he was right. Don would never, in a million years, betray his family and friends.

'_But what if I can't stop myself_?' the thought came unbridled to his mind. '_If I'm a clone made by the Shredder himself, who's to say that I can't be controlled_?' The thought made Don's stomach turn even as Stockman started speaking.

"The Shredder may be able to take control of him remotely to kill the inner workings of those who would oppose him. Meaning us."

Don's heart practically stopped. '_No_,' he thought horrified. '_I could never hurt any of them. I could never harm Mikey._'

"Well duh," Angel drawled making Don almost want to throw up.

"I'm just saying," the once scientist said dismissively.

"It is a possibility," a voice Don did not recognized agreed.

"Don't you think I haven't thought of that?" Mike's voice held a sudden edge to it. A bite that Don had only ever heard in Raph's voice before or on occasions Leo's when Raph had pushed him too far. To now hear _Mike_ using it was startling, something that shouldn't have been there ever. "I know that he might be a plant! I know that he may not be the actual original Donatello."

Don's eyes widened and a hand came up to his mouth trembling. Mikey was always about instincts when Don was about facts. Mikey was all about the guts and Don was all about the brain. If Mikey thought he may be a clone then it probably was more likely than not. Mikey was always good and seeing the underlining truth where Don always needed proof.

"Oh Mikey," April said sadly.

"I have already gone over most the scenarios and I think that even if he is a plant-" There was a long pause before Mike continued on. "If he is a clone made by the Shredder then it would only make sense that he's waiting for the right moment to use him. We have time."

Don actually nodded his head before he even thought about it, agreeing with Mike's logic. If it _was_ the truth, if he _was_ a clone then there were still far too many questions about why he was left free to roam around, especially with absolutely no memory of any current events. There was something more going on. The Shredder was calm and collected when it came to his plans and very, very methodical. He would have thought it through from start to finish though from the sound of it, it didn't seem as if Stockman agreed. With a shake of his head, Don shifted a bit as his one foot started tingling with the onset of numbness from his odd hunched position.

"I doubt it," Mike answered Stockman, echoing Don's thoughts unknowingly.

"You would know. You've been fighting him nearly all of your life," the voice Donatello didn't know spoke again.

There was a very long pause and Don inched closer to the window. Someone released a large sigh. "Why do you think I had him in the far corner?" Michelangelo spoke gruffly and Don's couldn't stop his jaw from dropping in shock.

'_What in the world is he speaking of_?' Don thought frantically as he waited to hear what Mike would say next. '_What is he_-?'

"I'm not stupid," Mike continued angry and frustration his voice once again. "I know that he could possibly be a threat!"

Don's eyes slammed shut and the constriction in his chest returned. He couldn't blame them though for their doubts about him. _He_ even had doubts about himself.

"And if he is then believe me," Mike's voice was firm and resolved as he spoke. "I will be the first one to take him out before anything happened that could hurt you."

'_Not if I take myself out first_,' Don thought with a determined nod. Glancing about Don slowly backed up and away from the office. He had to leave. That much was clear. He could not, _would_ not put his family in danger.

It didn't take him long to find a small side door and to slip out of the building. There were a few young men outside, very well hidden behind old boxes and other cover but they were watching for anyone trying to get _into_ the warehouse, not leaving it. It was an easy thing to move in the shadows and slip away to the next building, then using that one as cover, slip to yet another, getting further and further away from where the rebels were hiding.

'_It's the best thing_,' Don told himself as quickly left the warehouse district and moved further into the city. '_There are too many unanswered questions. Too many possibilities_.'

Slipping into the shadows, he moved quickly and quietly. He had to get away and truly think things through. He had to find out himself if he was a clone and worse, if he was made with the specific purpose of finding Mikey and the others. If he was a creation then there could only be few reasons behind why he was made, especially by Shredder. However why would the Shredder go to such lengths to clone him and then just let him go? What could he hope to gain from such a feat?

The answer was simple. Either as bait to lure his brothers and the heart of the rebellion out into the open or at least make them slip up somehow or as a trail for the Shredder to follow. After watching April and Angel work however and the way Mike acted as they were leaving the other base Don knew that there was no way that they would slip up. They were too use to what they were doing, too careful about everything because even the smallest mistake would have meant their lives. So the only logical answer had to be the second one. Shredder was hoping to follow him, knowing that Don's brothers would instantly take him in and bring him to the very heart of the resistance operations.

'_But how would they know where I am unless I had some sort of subliminal messaging in my mind to call them or_… _something._' Even to himself it sounded weak. He knew what he himself would have done however to track someone who was very good at disappearing.

"If I'm synthetic, then it could be that there's something in me, something in my DNA that's easy for them to follow," he murmured to himself. "But what?"

Don slowed his steps slightly, looking about and trying to get his bearings. The city was so changed from his memorized maps. The addition of factories and the destruction of multiple buildings, everything looked so foreigner. Don couldn't even believe that he was in New York.

Shaking his head, he looked about and headed into the shadow of what was once an old pizzeria. He couldn't help but smile at that as he sat down on the steps in the back and thought. '_So either there's something in my blood, some sort of_…_ scent or something that Shredder can track or there's a much easier answer. I may be bugged._' Don groaned as he leaned back against the doorframe. '_Great. Now how do I find out_?'

The answer was simple however. He needed to examine himself. He had to look at not only his DNA under a microscope but also find some sort of way to x-ray himself and look for any mechanical device hidden within him. Looking for surgical scars would be useless considering the clone theory. A device could have been implanted in him at any time during the process.

An almost hysterical chuckle came up Don's thought at the absurdness of it all. Here he was trying to think when the best time to insert a tracking device during the development of a clone was and here he was the possible clone himself. It was almost bizarre. He certainly didn't feel like a clone but then again, how was he to know what a clone felt?

"Focus Donnie," he chastised himself. "And stop talking to yourself."

With a sigh, he stood back up and stretched the kinks out of his back. He had to think things through. He needed answers. The only way was to figure out what he truly was. So he needed equipment but where to get it? He had to find a safe place to conduct his experiments as well but according to Mikey, Shredder had eyes and ears all over the city. It had to be a place no one would even think about.

It was like a light bulb went on over his head as he realized the best place was the last place they would ever think to look, the lair that was already destroyed. Shredder knew that it was in shambles and that had been where Don had been "dumped", so to speak, so it wasn't as if the Shredder would expect him to still be there, especially with it in ruins. And according to Mikey, no one ever went there anymore, not him or Raph or Leo so there was no chance that he would run into his two eldest brothers either. The best part of the idea was from what he had seen during his investigation, all of Don's equipment was still there. It was perfect.

'_Now how in the world do I get back_?' Don wondered curiously as he looked around the unfamiliar landscape. Glancing around, Don began heading down the alleyway, looking at each building as he past until he found one boasting what he was looking form. Quickly scuttling towards the fire escape, he looked around once again before he reached for the first rusted out rung of the ladder.

Ensuring his weight was equally balanced he began to climb up towards the roof. Things always looked better from high up and he could probably get his barring better if he could actually look at the lay out of the streets and compare them to the multiple highway maps he had memorized. '_And Raph teased me for keeping all those different maps,_' Don chuckled to himself as he flipped himself over the edge and onto the roof. With a sigh, he turned to see where he was.

A gasp escaped him as he finally got his first good look of the city. Half of it lay in ruins. Just completely destroyed. There were buildings missing complete sides to them never mind the forest of gurneys and old framework to the right of him. It looked like some bizarre apocalyptic city from all those end of the world movies that they use to watch on movie night.

He was a good six or seven miles from the center of the city but the scorch marks were clearly visible on the remains of some buildings. The left side of the city that was once the residential area now boasted all those factories Don had spotted when he had first come up from the lair. Now that the sun was rising, the huge plumes of smoke were clearly visible even as they blotted out most of the suns rays.

'_Is this really New York_?' Don thought horrified as he looked around. '_Can this really be my once home_?'

The shock was setting in but Don fought it back down. He didn't have time to stand there gawking, he had to get to the nearest sewer grate and get back to the lair, or at least the garage where the turtle's vehicles were housed. With a shake of his head, Don turned away from the altered skyline that was now before him and turned instead to look at the streets. It seemed as most of streets were just as Mikey had said left in ruins with rubble blocking most of them.

However there were still enough landmarks for Don to get his bearings. It was going to take a long time to get back to the lair considering he was all the way on the other side of the city. Though he had to admit that Mikey and April knew what they were doing when they chose a hiding place. They were far enough away from the factories but not far enough that they would be easily tracked.

With a sigh, he started moving, jumping from roof to roof. He had to get closer topside while he could before the sun rose too high in the sky. Just because the Shredder made him didn't mean that he wasn't in danger. If anything of Shredder's, or even any one, had lost their purpose then Shredder wouldn't hesitate to have them eliminated. And if he really was sent to Mikey and the resistance as a plant then the moment he left their base of operations he had lost his usefulness.

He didn't want to die however. Even as a clone, the need to live was still very strong with in him. The only reason he would take himself out was if he truly was putting his, or rather Donatello's, family in danger. But they didn't know where he was and if the Shredder had placed some sort of tracking device within him then the Utrom would find him soon enough.

Don hoped however that he would be able to figure out what it was that could possibly be leading Shredder to his location before that happened. Then perhaps once he figured it out and managed to neutralized it somehow then perhaps he can go back to April and her resistance and help out the same way that Mikey did. He apparently had thirty years to make up for, even though he wasn't the true Donatello. He carried Don's blood, at least he thought he was, and they were still his family.

Gasping, Don hit the floor of the roof as he heard a very familiar sound coming up behind him. Scuttling towards an old shed, Don quickly hid himself as the sound of the helicopters whirling blades got closer. The helicopter had a searchlight turned on and was scanning each and every roof that it flew over.

Cursing under his breath, Don quickly moved around and slipped into the shed before the helicopter finished with the building next to him. Now that he was paying attention Don could hear multiple helicopters and realized that the further into the city he went the louder and closer those helicopters sounded. Clearly they were looking for someone but the question was whom were they searching for? Him or his brothers?

'_If I was marked somehow then what the heck am I doing hiding in a shed_?' Don thought with a shake of his head. '_But if I'm easy to track then why are they searching different roof tops_?'

The noise of the helicopter suddenly right above his head and Don's breath caught in his throat as he waited. Thought the broken slats of the shed Don could see the search light sweeping across the roof and he pressed himself even further back into the corner of the shed, grateful that the roof was still mostly intact. The helicopter hovered for a long moment, the light moving back and forth as they checked every inch of the roof.

The breath left him in a whoosh when the helicopter suddenly moved on and went to the next roof in line. Sighing in relief, Don leaned back against the rotted wall, gently so as not to go tumbling through it and waited until the helicopter moved further down the line. He sat there for at least ten minutes before he finally clambered back to his feet and dared to peek out at the world beyond.

In those ten minutes however the sun had gotten higher and what sunlight that could make it through the thick smoke and smog had lit up the city in some dark gray haze. "Damn," he muttered under his breath, the swear word just slipping out of him. "Have to get underground…"

Moving as quickly as he could and trying his best to stick to what shadows there were, Don made his way to the edge of the building and calculated the best way to get down. Glancing around once again his eyes widened as he realized that the sky was almost full of helicopters now. He could count at least twenty of the hovering over the different buildings.

He didn't even stop to think as he jumped up on the ledge of the roof and jumped. Angling his fall easily enough, he managed to get his feet under him and he propelled off the edge of the building next door and he sprung from side to side before finally landing down on the ground. He quickly fell to his knees and slipped over to the cover the large building next to him, keeping his eyes on the helicopters overhead.

It took a moment when he realized that his foot had started throbbing and with a small hiss he looked down and realized that his foot was bleeding profusely. Glancing back at the center of the ally he frowned as he could just barely make out the reflecting shards of glass on the ground. Sighing, he picked out the few pieces of glass out of his skin and gently placed his foot back on the ground. Wincing he lifted his foot so he was balancing on the ball of his feet and quickly moved to the next alleyway practically on his toes.

Don realized just how much the city had changed as he realized there weren't even garbage cans anywhere that he could rummage through for an impromptu bandage. If Shredder was pumping the waste of those factories through the sewer system then the chemical contamination would be absolutely horrid. It might be better to remain street level and head back to the building with the Tunneler and take the elevator back down but not if there was a search party practically over his head.

"And dogs," Don gasped as he could hear the sound of barking and growling somewhere behind him.

Quickly moving towards the edge of the building, he glanced around the corner and stared as he could make out a large group of humans clambering out of multiple vans, dogs barking at their sides excitedly. They were gathering together and going over some sort of maps. Don groaned as he watched them. Clearly they were there for a reason and Don had a sinking feeling that they were there looking for him.

'_I _have_ to have some sort of tracker in me,_' he thought despondently as he watched the humans speaking to one another. '_How else were they able to find me so quickly_?'

Groaning, he slipped back further into the ally and moved towards the back of the building. Ensuring that he was absolutely silent he quickly moved towards the chain link fence that lined the back of the alleyway. Luckily there were sizable gaps in the fence that Don could easily slip through instead of needed to climb over it however that also meant that the humans could follow quite easily as could the dogs.

They might be able to follow him rather easily but Don wasn't about to let them catch him so quickly. This group of humans was in the same type of uniform as the one's Don had encountered earlier when he had been reunited with Mikey so they weren't Shredder's elite so there was a large probability that they weren't quite sure where he was exactly. It could be they knew he was just in the general vicinity, unable to pinpoint his location.

If Don could just buy some time, just get some distance between them then maybe he could figure out a way to keep them from tracking him again. He just needed some time, time and a few necessary pieces of equipment. And if he couldn't, then at least he could lead them further away from April and the rebels.

Scanning the area it didn't take him long to spot what he had been looking for. A manhole cover! Sighing in relief and hoping that his foot would survive whatever nastiness was down there, he dove for the cover. He didn't have the strength that Raph always possessed but he managed to get the cover off with little to no fuss and quickly scuttled down the ladder.

The complete darkness in the sewer below gave him momentary pause before he started moving, wincing as the freezing possible not-water collected in the bottom of the sewer sloshed around his ankles, the cuts on the bottom of his feet stinging with each step. Moving quickly Don placed his hand against the wall to keep his bearings as he moved quickly in the darkness.

He had to keep moving, that much was certain. He had to keep moving and he had to find someplace where he could engage in battle and have the upper hand. He had to find a place that was wide enough that he wouldn't get backed into a corner. He had to find some place in the sewer where he could have multiple exit strategies. He had to find-

"What the shell-?" Don muttered as his hand suddenly came in contact with a strange box hanging on the wall.

The sudden beeping instantly alerted Don to what it was he had stumbled across and he whirled around and bolted towards the other end of the sewer as the beeping got faster. Fear gave him strength as he ran faster than he ever had in his life before the world went bright as the bomb exploded behind him and the force of the blast propelling Don forward and he found himself flying through the air. He winced before he even hit the ground hard, the water-like substance sloshing upward and into his mouth.

Coughing the hideous liquid out of his mouth he clambered up to his knees, shaking his head slightly hoping that the ringing would stop soon. Groaning, he moved to the other side of the sewer and used the wall once again to help himself up. "Why didn't I think that the sewers would be booby trapped?" he muttered to himself around coughs.

Glancing at where the bomb had exploded he frowned at the few sporadic flames that were still burning on random debris. Hell, there was even a mattress down there. "I had to have hit my head," Don groaned as he shook his head again and did his best to ignore the fact that there was a mattress burning a few feet from him.

Ensuring that he was able to stand he looked about with the minuscule light to try his best to figure out which direction he should go. The explosion would have defiantly alerted someone to his presence and he had to keep moving. They could find him any-

"There he is!" a voice shouted and Don whirled around stunned to see a body clambering down a ladder from the street.

"Oh _shell_!" Don gasped as he whirled around and bolted away. He had a good head start on them and he knew the layout of the sewers better than even most city workers, if only the darn water at his ankles weren't there. It would be easier to hide if the sound wasn't alerting everyone to his every move. If he could just get to someplace where he could easily ditch them-

Figures suddenly appeared before him and Don slid to a stop, the water splashing upward as he nearly fell forward from his built up momentum. Don gasped and started slowly moving backwards, his hand moving towards his Bo even though the cramped quarters would have made the long weapon difficult to wield in such close combat. That had always been the thing about his weapon of choice. Unlike Mikey's Nun Chucks, Raph's Sais or even Leo's swords, his Bo staff was meant for a more wider battlefield, not cramped sewer tunnels but Don had always made it work somehow.

But he knew that he was outmatched the second he saw what the figures were wearing. The dark, formfitting ensembles that close enough that weren't easily snagged but loose enough for easy movement. The kind of cloths hand to hand fighters would wear.

They weren't regular ninja's before him however; these were Shredder's hand picked elite. These were the best of the best and no matter how well Splinter trained him, Don knew that he was not the firm fighter his other brothers were. Even if they had been ordered to bring him in alive, he was still in for a world of hurt.

But even by himself, he wasn't about to go quietly. He was still going to fight against them and he was going to fight as hard as he could. Oh no, he was going to make them work for their prize.

-To Be Continued

Please Join us next time for chapter Six: The Underground Battle


	6. Perfectly Tarnished: I Got The Hat!

**Never The Same Again: ****Part 1- Perfectly Tarnished **

_By The Black Dragon Queen_

**Author's Note**: WOW! It's been a moth over a year since I updated this fic! I am so, so very sorry! /_cries_/ I do apologize but my Transformers fic has sort of taken over my life. However the wonderful movie _Turtles Forever_ came out on DVD (not the extended version but a version nonetheless) so I've been re-reading my favorite TMNT fics. Now I know I stated that this chapter would be titled "Underground Battle" however I came to the startling realization about one important detail. I suck at writing fight scenes. Which is kind of bad when you're writing for a series called _Teenage Mutant _**NINJA **_Turtles_. Hoo-boy. This ought to be a challenge. Wish me luck!

* * *

Chapter Six: I Got The Hat

Donatello was very proud of himself. He had lasted a whole seven minutes against the Foot elite. That was a new personal best.

Mentally sighing, he watched though his now one clear eye as the team leader took his bo and snapped it in half against the wall of the sewer. Don winced as the familiar piece of wood splintered and cracked before being dropped in the horrid water. The guy was so going to pay for that. Maybe Don could muster up enough energy to snag his hat or something.

The fight had been completely one sided and though Don gave it his all, Don's all was not good enough against the elite as say, Leo's all. Even Mikey could last longer against them. Sixteen year old Mikey at that! Who knew how forty-six year old Mikey handled against them. Probably could wipe the floor with them by now if they've managed to survive this long.

His injured foot had a lot to do with his unbalanced stance and the limited space hampered his bo staff just as he knew it would. The team of four had overpowered him and subdued him rather quickly. Don had gotten in some good hits but they hit better and harder. His ribs were bruised, luckily not broken, and his left eye was completely swollen. They hadn't used their more deadly weapons such as their kamas, tridents or katanas but instead had used subduing weapons such as a chain weapon that Don didn't recognize.

It had been a small dart that had to have been filled with a strong inhibitor that had finally taken him down. Clearly they wanted to capture him alive rather than just take him out of the picture completely. Don did not fall unconscious but was feeling rather lax and half asleep, like the real world was sort of glazed over like in a dream. The pain in his ribs and eye still hurt like all hell though, much to his dismay. "Couldn't at least add a muscle relaxant or something…" he muttered as he was hauled out of the water.

His only regret, as they shuffled him up the ladder to where a normal patrol was hauling him out of the manhole, was that he didn't get to know the older Mikey as well as he would have liked, never mind not seeing Raph or Leo at all. '_Maybe Shredder will keep me a live for a little while so I can at least hear what's happened to them._'

"Load him into the truck," one of the patrol men shouted. "_Carefully_!"

"Well duh," Don couldn't help but mumble in reminiscence of Angel, the message from his brain stating for him to keep silent never quite reaching his mouth. One of the four men carrying him to the truck actually stifled a laugh. Don couldn't help but smile slightly at that.

"Watch the roofs!" One of the elite shouted. "He was spotted with Michelangelo earlier. He's got to be close!"

"Well duh," the man who had laughed snickered.

"Shhhh!" one of the others hissed. "You'll jinx it!"

"He did," a deadly voice rang out.

"Shit! Code Red! All units fan out!"

"Get that one in the truck!"

"Where is he?"

"Don't let go of that one!"

"Look out!"

Don frowned as the arms supporting his left side suddenly disappeared and he slumped forward, pulling his weight out of the others grasps. He was coherent enough to ensure that he fell on his less injured right side so as not to damage his ribs any further than they already were. He wondered vaguely if they were cracked.

The sound of punches landing, metal striking metal and gun fire sounded behind him as a few more humans suddenly were at Don's side again. Even drugged as he was Don was able to make full use of the shell on his back as he rolled over and pushed off with his good foot, swinging around and knocking their feet out from under them. '_Strike,_' Don thought with an almost maniac giggle before his injured foot made itself known as he went to stop spinning. "Oh that hurt."

"DONNIE!"

"Hey Mikey! Oh, wait. It's just 'Mike' now isn't it?" Don tried to suppress a hysterical giggle and failed miserably.

A large form suddenly dropped down next to him and Don peered up and his old-younger brother. "Status?" Mike bit out as he blocked the swing of a katana with, of all things, a shot gun.

"Drugged. Some sort of inhibitor or something... Can't walk either," Don announced.

"Shit," Mike snarled as he pulled back and the shot gun went off.

There was a horrific scream of pain in the background but Donnie didn't pay all that much attention to it. "Leave me."

"Not a chance!" Mike snapped back. "I'm not losing you again!"

"Not Donatello," Donnie muttered dazedly. "Clone."

"Fuck," Mike muttered under his breath as he stabbed one of the elite with his own trident. When had he gotten that? Don's good eye slid to the figure off to Mike's side.

"Left," he muttered.

"Got it." Mike swung around and the patrol guard didn't know what hit him as the trident's middle prong got him in the throat.

'_Ick_,' Don turned away from the blood spewing all over the place. He blinked. "Where'd the other ones go?" he muttered confusedly as only three of the elite remained.

"Man, they really gave you some good shit didn't they?" Mike asked as he lashed out with a now broken trident handle, shoving the jagged end right into an unarmored side of one of them. More blood spilled out. Don watched it spray incomprehensibly.

"Really good," he agreed.

"You're. Not. Taking. Him!" Mike snarled as he did a quick spin kick and knocked one of the two elite away.

"The master has order his detainment at all costs," the head elite finally spoke. "He has made the apprehension of Donatello top priority."

"Too bad you won't be able to fill that order," Mike snapped as his arm shot out and the sun glinted off something that the man deflected with his sword.

"Even if you stop us, others will hunt him down. Master Shredder will not be deterred," the ninja continued.

"Same shit, different day," Mike snapped. "He said the same thing when he swore out warrants for us."

"Ah, but you have not been missing for thirty years have you?" the ninja taunted as Mike fought off the other two elite.

"What's ya point?" Mike huffed as one of the two elite went down. Don had no idea what his brother did to him as he used the truck's tailgate to help himself up.

"You three are different from your brother," the head elite announced. "We have always been aware of your movements. The level you three have progressed to in your fighting. Just look around, you've taken out all my men. But the Shredder has decreed that Donatello out of all four of you is the most dangerous."

Mike frowned as he stared at the human in confusion. "Just what are you trying to say?" he asked slowly.

The head elite gave Mike his full attention, more than willing to relay his master's own words from earlier that day. "That while you three and your rebellion have been a hindrance in Master Shredder's dealings, _he_ is too formidable an opponent to allow roaming free."

Mike scowled, trying to understand the ninja's underlining meaning to the words while the elite spun his katana around before dropping into a fighting stance. Mike reciprocated, shifting his balance as he brought his nun-chucks back to the fore-front. The two stared at one another, neither one moving, each watching the other for the slightest give away as to their next move.

'_The two that got away had to call for back up too_,' Mike thought anxiously. '_I have to end this quickly and get Donnie under cover before-_'

Mike's thought stopped dead as there was a sudden movement behind the elite ninja and suddenly the man's hat was swiped right off his head. "I got it!" Donnie cried triumphantly and Mike made his move in that split-second distraction. The tanto slid into the man's eye socket with little resistance as the man turned back to face him. He yanked the blade out quickly as the body fell to the ground. Don frowned down at the now corpse. "Ewwwww."

"Come on!" Mike snapped as he snagged Don's free hand and started to dragged him off towards the alleyway.

"My feet hurt," Don whined petulantly. "Can't we take the truck?"

Mike actually froze in surprise. His gaze going to the large army truck still idling away he let out a small snort. "Even drugged to the gills you're always looking ahead," he laughed before he turned back around and tugged Don in the new direction.

Don climbed into the passenger seat, the hat going on his lap as Mike quickly got in. "Stick shift. Fuck," Mike snarled as he spotted the shift.

"I got it!" Don called out and he quickly reached down and set his hand on the shift. "Ready!"

Mike stared at his brother for a long moment before he gave a half shrug. "Right, let's go."

It took a couple of blocks for them to get in a rhythm as Don would shift gears before Mike was even ready as he was more attuned to the engine's different creaks and groans due to his mechanical knowledge. More than likely because Don knew the ins and out's better than even Raph did. They drove mostly in silence afterwards as Mike navigated the back and abandoned roads of the city.

"Where are we going?" Don asked after a moment. His slurring had dissipated some and Mike sighed as he realized that the drug must already be leaving Don's system. The Foot must have assumed that he would be secured by this point in time and had the dosage set accordingly. "Back to April?"

"Too late now," Mike answered as he turned towards what was once Central Park. "We can't meet up with them till after dark."

"Oh." Don's voice sounded small as he looked back down at the stick shift again. They drove in silence for a few more blocks.

"They don't want me there, do they?" Don asked quietly.

"NO!" Mike quickly countered. "April always wants' you around, you know that. Angel too."

"Not Don. Clone."

"We don't know that," Mike quickly growled out. He tried to think of a way to explain himself in "Don speak" while Don was still slightly out of it. "We just… don't have all our facts yet."

Don blinked. "Point." Mikey let out a sigh of relief before Don continued. "You'll take care of it though," Don grinned at him brightly. "You always were a good caretaker."

Mike nearly groaned. "Don, that conversation you heard. I don't think you heard all of it-"

"Does it matter?" Don interrupted. "We don't know what I am."

"You're Don, 'nuff said."

"But I could be a clone made by Shredder!"

Mike thought about that for a moment. "You know Don, that head ninja was saying some interesting stuff."

"I got his hat!" Don announced gleefully.

"Yes you did get his hat," Mike chuckled, wondering exactly how aware Don was currently with whatever it was that was running through him. "Don," he spoke after a long while and Don's good eye meet with Mike's unflinchingly. They stared at one another for a while before Mike sighed and slowly moved the truck into a heavily wooded area. Without the landscapers most of central park had run wild. "Wait here," he commanded as reached by his knees before he climbed out.

Don frowned and watched as Mikey moved around and popped the hood, blocking his view of the other turtle. Don frowned wondering what it was that Mikey was doing. He was never really any good with the mechanical aspect of any of their vehicles. With a sigh, Don set the hat aside sadly and reached for the passenger door.

Mikey had practically climbed onto the engine and was looking around with a small penlight that he suddenly had in his hand. Don wondered briefly where he had gotten in as he climbed up onto the front bumper to look into the front of the truck as well. "What are we looking for?" he asked in a mock whisper.

"Jesus Crist!" Mike yelped in surprise as he jumped and nearly fell backwards off the truck. Don simply reached out and hauled Mike back by his shoulder strap. "Why aren't you in the truck?"

"Curious," Don shrugged as he turned back to the engine. "So what are we looking for?"

Mike sighed as he also turned back to the engine and waved the penlight over it again. "Tracker. Shredder's guys keep changing the shape and moving it around so it's harder to see. If it's not here it might be under the carriage."

Don glanced over the engine for a while. "That," he announced pointing to a small dime-sized bolt. "That's not part of the piston ring."

Mike stared at the small round piece of metal before he reached forward and easily yanked it off. He stared at the magnet attached to the back. "Nice one."

Don grinned. "What do we do with it?" he asked curiously. "Break it?"

"Nah," Mike grinned as he passed the small tracker to Don. "Hang on a second."

Don watched curiously as Mike moved away from him and started looking under the underbrush. When he got down onto his knees and practically crawled under the bush Don's eyes widened in surprise before he too got on his knees, trying to see what it was that Mike was looking for. "Need help?"

Mike didn't reply and Don was about to repeat his question when Mike suddenly dove to the left and there was a sudden high pitched squealing sound. "Got ya you little-" Don blinked as Mikey crawled out of the bush and stood up, his prize clutched tightly in his hand. "Hold him," Mike commanded as he passed the squirming rat over to Don.

Ensuring his grip kept the rat from managing to get his teeth into Don's fingers he held on to the furry creature in one hand and the tracker in the other. A grin bloomed over his face and Mikey chuckled as he pulled out a string of twine with a washer on the end. Clamping the washer onto the magnet Mikey pressed the tracker to the rat's back and with both hands free Don was able to get the rat positioned so Mike could wrap the twin around the animal a few more times and quickly tied it off with a one-handed bowline knot.

Snickering, Don bent down and let the rat take off into the woods. "Time to go?"

"Time to go," Mike agreed as he quickly headed back for the front of the truck and dropped the hood as Don clambered into the passenger seat.

"Steal trucks often?" Don asked with a laugh as they headed off.

"More than you know," Mike snickered. "I'll tell ya, it was a lot easier with you here than it was by myself."

"I can imagine," Don chuckled as he leaned back in his seat, the hat once again on his lap. Shifting gears again, Don watched the spars scenery go by. "What did he say?" he asked after they drove thirty minutes in silence, winding this way and that.

Mike glanced over at Don and took note that his brown eye was less glazed over. The other one however was still swollen to the size of a baseball. "We'll have to get the swelling down on that," Mike sighed as he turned again. "And I'm not avoiding the question," he added as Don opened his mouth to ask again. "Just wait till we're no longer on the move."

Don nodded in understanding and he was silent as they drove for a while before pulling into, of all things, a parking garage. "Well head to the apartment building next door," Mike explained as he weaved around some debris and maneuvered the truck into a dark corner.

With the truck secured the two clambered out, the straw hat still in Don's grasp as they quickly moved to the building next door. It took a few searches before they found an apartment not completely in ruins. The couch even was still intact though it was sagging in the middle. Don frowned at it and sat down on a wooden kitchen chair instead, setting the hat on the table. Mikey was rumbling somewhere in the back of the apartment before he came out, a dusty pillowcase in his hand. "Be right back," he stated and quickly ducked out the door. Don blinked in surprise but Mikey was back before he made good on his decided to follow.

The pillowcase was folded into a smaller square and sopping wet. Don stared at it dubiously as Mike held it out. "Rainwater," Mike explained with a grin. "Likes to collect in the dips of the wreckage where it can."

Don nodded gratefully and set the hat aside to accept the impromptu washcloth and set it over his eye. It wasn't cold enough like ice would have been but it was better than nothing. "So?" Don asked as Mike flopped onto the couch. Don was surprised it didn't collapse under Mike's weight. "What was it he said that has you thinking?"

Mike sighed as he looked back at Don in the kitchen alcove. "He stated that the shredder wanted you captured."

"Well of course he would," Don sighed agitatedly. "Why kill something he spent so much time and effort on?"

"No, that's just the thing; he said that Shredder made your capture top priority."

Don frowned at that. "Why would he do that?"

"That's just the thing! Why would he if he's the one that –er, made you?"

Don nodded slowly. "It doesn't make any sense unless he's working on the mental aspect."

"Mental aspect?" Mike asked curiously.

Don thought long and hard for a moment before he spoke, choosing his words carefully. "Perhaps only a select few knew of my creation. Shredder would have to have a cover story for when I suddenly appeared, wouldn't he? The Foot and not to mention the Purple Dragons would question why he would let me run around freely and if they do nothing then that would send up red flags with April and the others, wouldn't it?"

Mike sighed. Sometimes he hated how methodical Don could be sometimes. "But that's only assuming he _did_ make you! What if he didn't?"

"What? You think someone else did? Like who?" even as he said it a name popped into his head and Don clamped his teeth shut to keep from blurting out _that_ particular name. Not until he had a firmer grasp on what was happening with rearguards to Shredder and the start of the war.

Mike nearly groaned in aggravation capturing Don's attention once again. "Don, we don't even know if you really _are_ a clone!"

"It's the only thing that makes any sense!"

"It can't be the only hypothesis though, right? There could be another explanation."

Don gave him a skeptical look. "Such as…?"

"Um…" Mike wracked his brain as he tried to think of something. It was like a bolt of lightning as one of Mike's favorite comic issues suddenly sprang to mind. "Time travel!"

Don's good eye went wide before he thought about it thoroughly. "Possible but not as likely as the clone theory."

"Why not? We've time traveled before!"

"I think I would have remembered another encounter with Renet," Don admitted after a moment, thinking of the quirky apprentice timestress they had encountered once before, "but it is possible, if only slight."

"It would explain why you're only sixteen too!"

Don shook his head as he contemplated it. "Too many things would have to happen for that to be possible. A way _to_ time travel to begin with. Renet aside, nothing we have or even the Shredder has allows time travel. Or rather did."

"Maybe an experiment you were working on?" Don glared and Mike threw up his hand in a mollifying gesture. "Okay, okay, sorry. Geez. I'm just saying."

"Let's look at this systematically," Don sighed. "We'll work on the clone theory first. And if I am a clone, yes, 'if'," he conceded at Mike's dark glare. "If I am a clone then I can't go back to April and the resistance. Not until we're sure that I don't have a tracker of my own somewhere in my system, whether microscopic or something larger."

"We can always tie it to a city rat or if it's one of those tiny ones, a cockroach."

Don laughed out loud at this. "I need to check myself over first. So I need some of my equipment. Maybe raid a hospital for an x-ray machine or something."

"Is that where you were headed? A hospital?"

Don ducked his head a bit. "Actually, I didn't think about that. I was actually headed back to the lair." He shrugged slightly. "I figured since that's where the Shredder dumped me it was both safe and the lat place he'd look." He sighed. "However the hospital idea seems like a better option but I don't know how to work most of those equipments."

Mike frowned and thought for a long time before he finally spoke. "I think I may know someone who would." Don looked at him hopefully but Mike only pulled a face. "Stockman."

Don's good eye widened. "Oh shell," he groaned in despair.

"He's the only other one who knows what to look for aside from you Donnie," Mike argued.

"I know," Don practically wailed. "That's the frightening part!"

"Well at least we have a plan now," Mike soothed.

"True," Don sighed as he leaned back in his chair and flipped the pillow-case around so a cooler side was once again pressed against his bad eye.

Mike watched him for a time before he heaved himself off the couch and moved towards the leg Don was keeping curled under him. "Let me see. I have a few things but Stockman and Hun can bring what medical supplies we need when we meet up with them."

"Oh God, I forgot about Hun," Don groaned as Mike pulled his leg out from under the chair to see the gash on Don's foot.

"Don't see how you could," Mike snickered. "They're a bit unforgettable."

"No kidding," Don agreed before a yelp escaped him at Mike's prodding.

"This is going to get infected."

"I know," Don sighed in agreement. "City streets, the sewers-"

"I can't believe you didn't realize the sewers would be booby trapped!"

"Sorry! I can get one wrong once in a while!" Don huffed irritably. "And I had a few other things on my mind too ya know."

"I know," Mike spoke quietly. "Donnie… I think I know what you heard that made you leave and I think I need to make this clear now." Don looked down in surprise as Mike looked up and caught his gaze with his own dark, serious one. "When I said I would take you out I meant 'out of the rebels hideouts'. Not out-out. Just, someplace else that would keep not only them safe but you as well."

Don ducked his head a bit, almost hiding behind the pillowcase compress. "I think I knew that somehow but-"

"But you're sixteen, thrust into a strange war torn world with a baby brother who's thirty years older than you are," Mike chuckled. "I think it's understandable that you would still be leery of us."

"But I shouldn't be," Don argued. "Not with you."

Mike shook his head as he stood back up. "It's going to take some time getting to know one another again," he explained quietly. "And I'm more than willing to wait." Don looked like he was about to argue again but Mike shook his head again and snagging Don's wrist, hauled him out of the chair. "We'll argue later," he chuckled. "You need rest."

Don looked like he was still going to argue but Mike had led him to the couch and unceremoniously pushed him down on it. "Well if you insist," Don sighed, trying to sound indignant but the large yawn that instantly followed hindered any though image he was going for.

Mike plopped down next to him and threw his arm around his shoulder. "It's been a long day, hasn't it?"

"Really long," Don sighed as he leaned back and propped his wounded foot on the broken table before him. "What were those chain weapons the foot were using? I don't think I've ever seen those before."

Mike looked over at Don in surprised. "The manriki-gusari?" He was quiet for a long time. "Raph could explain them better. He used those a lot in the year between your disappearance and that first assault on Shredder's strong hold." Don frowned but didn't ask. He had plenty of time later for question. "By the way, what are you going to do with the hat?"

Don chuckled. "Don't know. If I have the right equipment I'm thinking of bronzing it." Mike laughed uproariously and Don grinned slightly, glad he was able to get his brother laughing but he noticed that the tightness of Mike's grip around his shoulders never relaxed even a fraction.


	7. Perfectly Tarnished: The Doctor Is In

**Never The Same Again: ****Part 1- Perfectly Tarnished **

_By The Black Dragon Queen_

**Author's Note**: My internet has been down for nearly two weeks... can you tell? xD

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Chapter Seven: The Doctor Is In

"Well, don't you look a sight?" Stockman drawled as the two mutant turtles appeared from out the shadows of the old ambulance bay.

Don ducked his head rather embarrassed even as he felt the hand over his shoulder tighten. "Shove it Stockman," Mike growled as he helped Don hobble into the building and out of sight of anyone on the street later that evening.

Stockman huffed but Hun was looking at both Donatello and Michelangelo critically. "I take it you had a rather unpleasant encounter during your sightseeing?" he said flatly as he turned and followed them in.

"You could say that," Don smiled sheepishly from where he was leaning heavily on the other turtle as they made their way into the emergency waiting room.

"Did they inject you with something?" Stockman demanded.

"Yeah," Don confirmed softly. "Don't know what it was but it had a muscle relaxant and the usual narcotic side effects."

"Meaning he was as high as a kite there for a while," Mike laughed.

"Mikey!" Don yelped mortified. "Really?"

"You were giggling like a loon Don," Mike reminded him. "Definitely drugged."

"You don't have to sound so amused by it-" he cut himself off with a small squeak as Mikey pulled him tight against him before relaxing his grip. Don realized why when a new voice spoke up.

"Looks like you ran into more than dead end alleyways."

He glanced at the older gentleman leaning against the old reception counter but Mikey had already relaxed and even Hun wasn't paying attention to the man, which mean that he wasn't a threat but yet another member of the resistance. "Yeah, I failed to take into account that my knowledge of the city's alleyways and such is now sorely out of date," he admitted shyly before moving to extend his hand.

"Donatello," he introduced himself before frowning at the hat in his hand. "At least, I think," he muttered. He let out a tired sigh. "Feel free to call me whatever you want."

The man laughed as he reached forward and plucked the hat out of Don's limp grasp. "I think I like him," the man snickered and Don's eyes lit up with recognition.

"Oh! You're one of the gentleman who was in the office!" He frowned a moment. "Alan, right? Is the other gentleman Victor back helping the others?"

The man just stared at him before turning to the snickering Mikey. Even Hun was smirking. "You'll get use to him," Mike chuckled. "Why are you here anyhow?"

"Ms. O'Neil wasn't about to let us leave alone," Stockman growled. "The equipment is back here. Well come on Hun. Let's go."

Don could see Hun roll his eyes but he did swing the wheelchair towards a partially cleared hallway. The reason for Alan's presences made a bit more sense if they had to make a path for Hun to travel down. However a quick glance down the side hallways showed half of them cluttered and full of debris and a few others cleared like the one they were traveling down.

"Have you used this hospital before?" Don asked curiously.

"This one and a few others," Mike nodded.

"Most of the medicine has already been collected and used over time," Alan said from where he was brining up the rear. "But it still has most of the larger equipment we usually can get going with a generator."

"The labs are quite nice as well." One of Stockman's eyeballs had floated up and was looking back at Don and Mike creepily. Don was immensely glad that he hadn't had breakfast yet as the sight most likely would have made him lose it.

Of course with that thought, Don's stomach chose to rumble in protest. He could feel his cheeks flushing in embarrassment as there was a snicker behind him but thinking about it, Don hadn't had anything to eat since he first woke up in the middle of the lair's living room. His stomach growled again in confirmation.

Mike had stopped in the middle of the hallway and looked down at Don shocked. "Oh hell…"

"It's fine," Don quickly protested. "We should take care of all this first," he gestured around the hallway. "And I should get off this ankle and have a look at it in better light."

Mike's face went hard before he grit his teeth and started following Hun and Stockman again, all the while cursing himself mentally. In all the excitement, he had completely forgotten to get Donnie something to eat. Even he had eaten since the fight at the warehouse when he had first found Donnie, chowing down some gruel while Donnie had been sleeping that first time.

Don just ducked his head in embarrassment when his stomach gurgled again when a small stick of what looked like jerky was shoved in front of his face. Alan grinned at him as he tentatively took the offer meat. "Don't worry, it's still cow."

"Really?" Don glanced at Mike for confirmation and he bit into the jerky at the other turtles nod.

"There's a small section of the resistance who don't fight, so they raise cows and grow some crops out at Casey's old farm," Mike explained. "Helps us when we can't risk a raid on Shredder's store houses."

"Oh. Okay."

"Is he eating?" Stockman called out from in front of them. "He shouldn't be eating!"

Mike paused at looked at Don who rolled his own eyes. "It's fine."

"Not when you're going to have a CAT scan it's not!" Stockman bellowed back.

"You want to do a contrast-enhance study?" Don asked incredulously. "Seriously?"

"Of course. We need to check everything. Any transmitters or such could be anywhere. Including that shell of yours. We should do an MRI as well," Stockman continued as if Donatello hadn't spoken.

Don rolled his eyes again. "If you're doing it by generator it should still take over four hours to charge. I'll be fine by them. Especially if we do the blood tests prior to it."

"Humph."

Mike and Alan shared a disbelieving glance. "Donnie boy," Alan thumped a hand on Don's free shoulder and spun the elite's hat on a finger of his other hand. "You're all right."

Don blinked in surprise. "Um… thank you?"

Alan laughed. "You're welcome. By the way, is this what I think it is?" he held up the hat.

"Yeah…" Don ducked his head again as Alan burst out laughing.

"Need to put this somewhere in a place of honor," Alan snickered. "Not even Mike ever got one of the hats."

Don shrugged. "It's the only thing I could think of doing after I was drugged."

"Don wants to have it bronzed," Mike smirked.

"Fun," Alan snickered. "Perhaps we can send it off to the farm house."

"Can we focus children?" Stockman drawled from where he and Hun were waiting in front of a pair of doors.

Don and Mike shared another exasperated look but Alan went ahead to open the doors that led to another cleared out hallway. "We haven't gotten any of the elevators up and running so many things were moved down here but we'll have to go up for the scans," Alan explained.

"Of course," Hun muttered under his breath.

"For now, I think I need some antibiotics and a wrap for my foot," Don persisted. "We should take some blood though before hand."

"Of course," Stockman mimicked Hun's earlier statement.

They finally entered a somewhat set up examination room and Don hobbled over to the bed as Alan went over to a small duffle bag, pulling out a few things. "I'm going to be the one to draw the blood if you don't mind?" he asked as he pulled on a pair of surgical gloves.

Don looked to Mikey with his missing arm before he glanced at Stockman with his missing… everything. Hun himself seemed as if he could care less. "Uh, sure, no problem," he told Alan.

Mikey shot the man a warning look but Alan waved him off. It was quite routine taking his blood, but Stockman insisted on taking three full vials of samples for assorted testing. It was originally five but Don had reminded him that he wasn't going anywhere and that they could always get more samples at a later date.

After the blood samples, Mike handed him some antibiotics for his foot and Don wrapped it in some homemade bandages. Stockman sneered that he would more than likely need a tetanus shot but there wasn't it a shame that none existed anymore.

That statement just had Don just wondered what books he could get a hold of in any of the doctor's offices and he mentioned it to Mike that he wanted to search them as soon as they were done with the examinations. "Was all the rooms searched for everything that was salvageable?"

"You think I would leave good equipment to rot?" Stockman asked appalled.

"So you personally searched each and every room?" Don responded skeptically.

Alan, who was setting up a slide for Stockman, just laughed. "Yeah, he's a scientist…"

Stockman let out a huff but Mike laughed. "Don't worry. April did a search herself. There's a few catches around the city that she had us set up if you're looking for something specific."

"I'd still like to check around anyway. There might be items worth saving or just something I can use for spare parts for something. There are things I can use that April wouldn't be able to work with."

Alan looked at Mikey in disbelief and the other turtle grinned. "Did I ever mention that he was a mechanic as well?"

"Actually… no," Alan told him, much to Mike's shock.

"Really?" Don asked surprised.

"When they mentioned you at all," Alan admitted. "Perhaps earlier in the war but not since I've joined. Mentioning you became sort of taboo."

Don looked over at Mikey in disbelief and was surprised when he nodded back at him. "As the years went by and after we lost Splinter then Casey… it was very hard to bring you up. It just became… hard."

Don turned back towards the wall opposite, unable to look Mikey in the eye as shame flowed through him. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," Mike reassured him gently.

"Yes, if we're done with the emotional roller coaster," Stockman sneered.

"Shut up Stockman," Mike growled.

Stockman huffed as he looked at the video monitor that showed the little doughnuts that was Don's blood. "Everything seems normal," Stockman drawled. "I'm not seeing any anomalies."

"Still doesn't mean we can forgo a micro-emulsion or SIMBA test," Don argued. He soon found everybody's eyes focused at him. "Uh… that is, if you have the equipment for it."

"What do lions have to do with anything?" Mike asked curiously.

"Not Simba, SIMBAS. It's a- you know what, it doesn't matter. We don't have the necessary equipment for it anyhow," Stockman sighed.

"All the better for me to go foraging for things we can use to build said equipment," Don stated.

"It could all be pointless in the end," Stockman replied. "If you are a clone, it could literally be encoded in your very DNA. Without a core sample-"

"We don't know that he's a clone!" Mikey snarled.

"We don't know that I'm not either," Don reminded him gently. "It's better to look at it from every angle. Cloning is actually the most logical answer."

"You don't know that!" Mikey yelped. "It could have been anything!"

"Like what?" Don gave him a pointed frown.

"Um… you could have been cryogenically frozen?" Mike offered tentatively. Alan snickered but Don just smiled.

"I think my memories would be more fuzzy if I had been an ice cube for thirty years."

"Then what could it have been?" Alan asked. "Time travel?"

"We already thought of that," Don mentioned. "We've actually time traveled before and there's never been a case of missing memories as a result."

"Renet is a nut and can't handle that scepter worth a damn…" Mike shrugged, "but he's right. Even when we were with the dinosaurs, we had all our memories up to the minute of when we first got there and back."

"Dinosaurs?" Alan asked intrigued. "I don't think we ever heard that story."

"It's a rather boring one," Mike insisted.

Don rolled his eyes before he looked back over at Stockman. "As for a core DNA sample, when I was exploring the old lair I saw that my, or rather Donatello's, room was largely untouched. I'm sure that there's got to be something there with his old DNA."

"After thirty years however, most if it would be horrible degraded."

"Not necessarily," Don pressed. "If they could get DNA out of a mummy, there should be _something_ down there that's salvageable. Especially since it looks like no one ever went in my –_Don's_ room."

"Wonderful. Then we'll just head on down and get something-"

"You're not going to get anything," Mike interrupted. "_I'll_ go get it."

"You're not even going to allow us to traverse down there even now?" Stockman drawled.

"Hell no," Mike agreed. "Just tell me what I'm looking for."

"Practically anything that would have young Donatello's DNA," Stockman relented. "Used bandage, used tissue, a toothbrush."

"I'll help you look around," Don told him. "There were a few things I saw that could be recovered. A few computer monitors, the spare generators and the like. With what I can find here and a few other places, I should be able to make a few things that could help April and the others."

Mikey shifted uncomfortably but Don instantly knew what it was he was thinking. "I'm not going to insist you take me back there," he reassured him. "It might be best to give it some time to reassure that I'm not going to lead the Shredder right to you."

"Sorry Donnie," Mike shifted.

"Completely understandable. Until we know just how much my DNA has been changed, it's better to be safe than sorry."

"So you _do_ think that you're a clone of the original Donatello?" Hun finally contributed to the conversation.

"Ruling everything else out, it's really the only thing that fits. With Utrom technology, the cloning process could be improved. And after thirty years, Shredder has had plenty of opportunity to perfect it."

"Indeed," Stockman agreed. "But should it really be _you_ who goes to collect the samples?"

"What's that suppose to mean?" Mike growled.

"Just saying that he could purposely contaminate them is all," Stockman said. "Unknowingly, of course," he added at Mike's increased snarling.

'_Seriously, he's sounding way too much like Raph_,' Don thought bemused before his amusement fell away to shame. '_Is that because I wasn't there_? _He always looked up to Raph and Leo but if the fights got as bad as he said they were-_'

"Who's to say he hasn't already contaminated things?" Stockman's voice brought him out of his musing. "He's already admitted to being there. He could have planted items to be found later. Considering that he's the one who brought it up to begin with-"

"He would never!" Mike began but Don placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No, Mikey. He could be right," Don interrupted. "I don't know what I did before waking up if I did anything at all."

"But where else would we be able to get an old sample?" Alan asked.

"What about the old farm?" Don asked hopefully.

"No, the whole place has been retrofitted since the Shredder's take over. Anything that was there has been tossed out," Mike explained.

"Was there no where else?" Alan asked again.

"I hate to say it, but did Shredder have any DNA samples on us?" Don asked Stockman.

"If he does, we wouldn't be able to get anywhere near it," Hun told him flatly.

Don shifted again, keeping his weight off his injured foot before he looked back to Mike. "I hate to say it, but I _do_ know one person who _did_ have our DNA."

Mike pulled a face as Alan and Hun exchanged a confused look. "And who would that be?" Stockman drawled.

"Bishop," Mike finally bit out.

"Really? And how did that happen?" Stockman snickered.

"Does it matter?" Mike snapped back. "No one's seen Bishop in years."

"Really?" Don asked surprised. "What happened to him?"

"No one really knows," Mike threw up his hand in frustration. "He was a big factor in those first few years against the Shredder, especially when it was learned he was an alien but then nothing."

"And we have no idea about any of his own bases?" Don asked.

"Not a clue."

"Wonderful. Any other bright ideas?" Stockman posed.

"Other than April's place," Mike began.

"Which was destroyed by a fire," Alan put in.

"There's really no other place where we spent a lot of time."

"Um… what about the first lair?" Don asked hesitantly.

"What?"

"The one that Stockman's mousers ate," Don explained.

"My mousers-"

"Oh shut up Stockman," Mike, Alan and Hun all shouted. There was another "hump" but Stockman luckily did.

"The one that Leatherhead took over? Do you think there could be anything left?" Mike looked doubtful.

"Other than the new lair, it's the last place left really," Don admitted.

"And how do we know you didn't plant anything in _that_ lair?" Stockman accused.

"I don't know," Don bristled annoyed. "But it's better than nothing."

"Considering how much dust has to be down there, it should be obvious if anything was disturbed or not," Mike disputed.

"Unless it was planted a few years ago," Stockman challenged.

"Even then, the thickness of the dust would be obvious to the most unobservant," Don insisted.

"I think he means you Mike," Alan chuckled. Mike just grinned.

Don frowned as a thought occurred to him. "Where _is_ Leatherhead anyway? Did he make it to Utrom or…?"

"Or something…" Mike turned away slightly and Don was surprised to see a slight flush on Mike's cheeks. He looked over at Alan and Hun for some sort of clue as to why but both humans looked just as baffled as he was.

"Who's Leatherhead?" Alan asked curiously.

"Never mind," Mike insisted before turning back to Don. "So both lairs are the best bets we have to find Donnie's DNA. We'll check it out after we're done here."

"Right. Meaning we have to take this little think tank we have going here upstairs to the larger equipment," Stockman announced.

"Wonderful," Hun sighed unenthusiastically. Don found out why when Mike and Alan had to help balance the wheelchair up four flights of stairs.

As they waited for the generators to boot up, Don couldn't help but worry what it would be that they would find. Or not find as the case may be. Either way, it would be a few days before they found out.


End file.
